Save Our State - State measure would let illegal immigrants work legally

State measure would let illegal immigrants work legally
BY CINDY CARCAMO / THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
A California Assemblyman is proposing a measure that would allow nearly a million people who are in the country illegally to work lawfully in the state without much fear of deportation, according to published reports.
While several states throughout the nation are cracking down on those in the country illegally, Assemblyman Felipe Fuentes, D-Sylmar, is spearheading the California Opportunity and Prosperity Act, which was filed Friday with the state attorney general's office, according to the agency's website.
Fuentes called the measure a "moderate, common-sense approach" needed because of the federal government's inability to pass comprehensive immigration reform, The Sacramento Bee reported. It would apply to people who have lived in the state since at least January 2008, have no criminal record, and speak English or are trying to learn the language, among other qualifications.
Over the weekend, Barbara Coe with Huntington Beach-based California Coalition for Immigration Reform, e-mailed fellow anti-illegal-immigration activists, criticizing the measure and urging them to contact state legislators to stop the law.
"This is the most frightening news yet!" she wrote in an e-mail.
Assemblyman Tim Donnelly, R-Twin Peaks, told the Sacramento Bee that the initiative sidesteps immigration law.
"There's a proper process for coming to this country," he said about those who come to the country illegally. "Why don't you respect that?"
Those who support the measure said the state stands to make up to $325 million in new tax revenue from those who are working in the country illegally, the Sacramento Bee reported. The initiative needs 504,760 voter signatures to qualify for an upcoming ballot.
This is the latest state measure that has been friendly to people who are working in the country illegally.
Last month, Gov. Jerry Brown signed into law a bill that prohibits the state, cities, counties and special districts from requiring employers to use E-Verify, a free Internet-based system that checks if a new employee hire is allowed to legally work in the country. Orange County cities such as Orange, Mission Viejo, San Juan Capistrano, Yorba Linda and Placentia had to revisit clauses in some of their city contracts that required employers they do business with to use the federal tool.