Immigration

Bills Passed in the Last Legislative Cycle on Immigration


To summarize, the bills proposed in the last legislative cycle on immigration include the following:
  • Section 1: Law enforcement cannot discriminate according to race, religion, color, ethnicity etc.
  • Section 2: Intentional smuggling of humans into the United States is a felony. If the person being smuggled is of age  (18 years or older), the punishment is at least 5 years in prison or a fine of at most $10,000, or both. If the person is less than 18, the punishment is harsher: no less than 10 years in prison, or  $20,000 in fine, or both.
  • Section 3: Creates a law that makes assisting illegal smuggling a crime too.
  • Section 4: Including the legal punishment, smugglers will also have their vehicles/vessels they used for illegal smuggling taken away.
  • Section 5: Allows law enforcement to give non immigrants permission if they are helping police in a criminal investigation.
  • Section 6: Allows police to investigate citizenship of people in jail for small misdemeanors.
  • Section 7: Oklahoma State Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs Control is in charge of cracking down on illegal immigration.
  • Section 8:  Law Enforcement Education and Training can train officers on fighting illegal immigration. Also identifies what the training must pertain to.
Sources:
http://www.oklegislature.gov/BillInfo.aspx?Bill=HB1446
Date: 11-8-11

Other States and Immigration (namely Arizona and Alabama)


Alabama Governor Jan Brewer signed a controversial bill on immigration in 2010. The law is considered the toughest measure any state had taken to crack down on illegal immigration. Named Senate Bill 1070, it required Arizona drivers to always carry a certification of citizenship as proof that they are not illegal immigrants. This bill gave law enforcement the power to stop "suspicious" drivers and demand proof of citizenship.
The legal system in one state influences the legal systems in all the other states in the U.S. According to an article an Yahoo, Georgia, Mississippi, Oklahoma and South Carolina were the most likely to pass similar immigration laws. Alabama's Governor, Robert Bentley, has already signed a similar immigration law.
So far, Arizona and Alabama are the only two states to pass this new measure.
Sources


Date:11-8-11
How These Amendments Were Passed-How They Were Enforced and Challenged in Court


These proposed amendments were partially passed. A year ago, the Department of Justice challenged Arizona in court. As a result, some parts of the proposed bill, such as the detention of a driver without citizenship proof, were blocked. The civil rights group for Latinos, ACLU, also sued Utah for similar laws. The reason why the cour decided to block some parts of the law was because they contradicted federal immigration policy. The parts of the that the Department of Justice found were under the state's authority were passed.


Arguments against illegal immigrants and for the law include:
- Illegal immigration take American jobs. Americans desperately need these jobs due to rising unemployment rates.
- Illegal immigration increases the illegal drug threat. If illegal immigration is controlled, it would greatly help the U.S and Mexico in Mexico's drug war.


- Illegal immigrants get benefits (health care, financial aid etc.) but do not pay taxes.


- So many illegal immigrants are in the U.S undocumented. This is a risk to national security as so many people are in the country without proper identity.
 Fox News and Illegal Immigration
  




Arguments supporting illegal immigrants and against the law include:
- America is a land of freedom. Now that 12 million illegal immigrants are already here, we need practical solutions.
- People shouldn't be afraid of the government-they shouldn't see it as a threat.
- Because of the law, so many illegal Latinos won't report child abuse, domestic violence, poverty etc. because of fear of deportation.
- The law allows for Latino discrimination and profiling.
- Measures like carrying identification around everywhere are way too harsh.


Life of An Illegal Immigrant
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jTqv0h2ifkI

U.S Supreme Court Upholds Arizona Law
Obama and Illegal Immigration
   
Sources
http://abcnews.go.com/WN/arizona-immigration-law-faces-court-challenge-world-news/story?id=11225152
http://www.politicsdaily.com/2010/07/06/u-s-v-arizona-feds-sue-to-block-state-immigration-law/
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/05/13/eveningnews/main6481277.shtml
http://restorefairness.org/2010/07/department-of-justice-vs-arizona/
Date: 11-8/9-11
Our Representatives and Senators: Scorecard
The House of Representatives

HOUSE BILL 1446:  Immigration; relating to unlawful transport of an alien; making the smuggling of human beings            
   
   
    YEAS:85
    Armes              Fourkiller         McNiel             Roberts, D.       
    Banz               Glenn              McPeak             Roberts, S.       
    Bennett            Grau               Moore              Rousselot         
    Billy              Hall               Morgan             Russ              
    Blackwell          Hardin             Mulready           Sanders            
    Brumbaugh          Hickman            Murphey            Schwartz          
    Cannaday           Holland            Nelson             Sears             
    Casey              Hoskin             Newell             Shannon           
    Christian          Inman              Nollan             Stiles            
    Cockroft           Jackson            Ortega             Sullivan          
    Condit             Jordan             Osborn             Terrill           
    Coody              Joyner             Ownbey             Thomsen           
Cooksey            Kern               Peters             Tibbs             
    Cox                Key                Peterson           Trebilcock        
    Dank               Kirby              Pittman            Vaughan           
    Denney             Kouplen            Proctor            Watson            
    Derby              Liebmann           Pruett             Wesselhoft        
    DeWitt             Lockhart           Quinn              Wright            
    Dorman             Martin, Sc.        Renegar            Mr.Speaker        
    Enns               Martin, St.        Reynolds          
    Farley             McCullough         Richardson        
    Faught             McDaniel, R.       Ritze             
   
    NAYS: 7
    Hamilton           Scott              Shumate            Williams          
    McDaniel, J.       Shelton            Virgin            
   
    EXCUSED: 9
    Brown              McAffrey           Sherrer           
    Hilliard           Morrissette        Shoemake          
    Johnson            Roan               Walker      

Senate     
      
    YEAS:37
    Aldridge          Burrage           Jolley            Shortey          
    Allen             Crain             Justice           Simpson          
    Anderson          David             Marlatt           Sparks           
    Ballenger         Ellis             Mazzei            Stanislawski     
    Barrington        Fields            Myers             Sykes            
    Bingman           Ford              Newberry          Treat            
    Branan            Garrison          Nichols           Wyrick            
    Brecheen          Halligan          Reynolds         
    Brinkley          Holt              Russell          
    Brown             Johnson, R.       Schulz           

    NAYS:8
    Bass              Eason Mc          Laster            Rice             
    Coates            Johnson, C.       Lerblance         Wilson           

    EXCUSED:3
    Adelson           Ivester           Paddack          

    NOT VOTING:0


Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)