House Judiciary Hearing Highlights Debate Over Mandatory E-Verify Use
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On February 10, the House Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on Immigration Policy and Enforcement held a hearing, “E-Verify – Preserving Jobs for American Workers,” in which it considered whether to make E-Verify mandatory for all employers. House Judiciary Committee Chairman Lamar Smith (R–TX ) favors the idea, as does the Subcommittee’s Chairman, Representative Elton Gallegly (R–CA). In introducing his reasons for supporting the expansion of E-Verify electronic employment verification program, Representative Smith stated: “With unemployment over 9% now for 21 months, jobs are scarce and families are worried. According to the Pew Hispanic Center, seven million people are working in the U.S. illegally. These jobs should go to legal workers.” Continue reading this entry at Littler's Global Immigration Counsel.
Employers using E-Verify to authenticate employees’ work authorization status are subject to the Three-Day Rule, which requires an employer to create an E-Verify case no later than three business days after an employee first works for pay (commonly referred to as the Hire Date). Confusion sometimes arises, however, because the Hire Date differs depending on whether the E-Verify case is created before or after the first day an employee works for pay. To clarify the matter, United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) created a webpage explaining how to determine the Hire Date, and how to calculate the compliance deadline. Continue reading this entry at Littler's 
The U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland has upheld the E-Verify Federal Contractor Rule, scheduled to become effective September 8, 2009, that will require federal contractors to enroll in E-Verify within 30 calendar days after being awarded a covered contract and to start using the system within 90 days from the date of enrollment. 