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Ariz. governor enacts rigid penalties for illegal hiring

PHOENIX Citing the federal government’s failure to hammer out immigration reform, Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano enacted a law Monday that levies stringent penalties on restaurateurs and other employers who fail to verify the legal status of their workers.

Under the new rules, employers face the risk of losing their business licenses if they knowingly hire illegal immigrants. A second offense could result in permanent revocation of a business license, effectively preventing that employer from operating in the state.

Federal law already prohibits the hiring of illegal immigrants, but supporters of the Arizona measure say enforcement is lax. Napolitano herself called the bill flawed, but noted in a statement that something had to be done because the federal government "has failed miserably" to address the nation's immigration problems.  She urged state legislators to revisit the issue.

The governor also noted that the legislation does not provide enough money for the state attorney general to investigate complaints.

The U.S. Senate has twice derailed a measure that called for the most sweeping changes to federal immigration law since the mid-1980s. The bill never came to a vote either time because legislators failed to approve a procedural motion to end debate on the proposal.

Before the first unsuccessful cloture vote, the National Restaurant Association warned that failure to reform the federal laws would prompt states, counties and municipalities to enact stringent enforcement measures.

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