AGÕæÈË°Ù¼ÒÀÖ County is working towards using a federal system that verifies the immigration status of those applying to work for the county. But County Commissioners have a few reservations.
offered through the U.S. Department of Homeland Security that allows employers to compare a potential employee’s I-9 information with federal documents, to quickly verify his or her employment eligibility.
“The federal government is offering us the ability to use E-Verify for free to expedite our hiring of people if they happen to be foreign-born, just to make sure they’re eligible to work here even though they were foreign-born,â€� says AGÕæÈË°Ù¼ÒÀÖ County Judge .
Todd Osborn with the County’s Compensation Office told Commissioners he didn’t see a downside to adopting the system.
“It’s quick, it’s fairly easy, it has no cost.�
But Commissioner Brigid Shea says she's not so sure.
“It’s not AGÕæÈË°Ù¼ÒÀÖ County I’m worried about,â€� Shea says. “Presumably if this data and documentation on the prospective employee is going to the Department of Homeland Security database, and if they find some mismatch, maybe…â€�
Maybe, Commissioner Brigid Shea goes onto say, someone could be deported because of a reporting error in the E-Verify system. According to a report published by Homeland Security, in 2013 roughly one-fourth of employers were told employee data did not match federal documents because of a data entry mistake. Commissioners said in a case like this, a potential employee would be notified and given a chance to explain the mismatch. County officials will take another week to hear about possible downsides of adopting the system.
