03/05/10

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) _ Some businesses would have to confirm the
immigration status of employees under a bill passed by the Utah
Senate but would no longer face criminal penalties if they didn't.

An original version of the measure included the penalties but
bill sponsor Sen. Chris Buttars removed it, saying businesses had
complained.

Lawmakers voted 24-4 to pass Senate Bill 251 on Friday, sending
it to the House.

It bars a private employer with 15 or more workers from hiring
new employees after July 1 without verifying their immigration
status.

Several states require businesses to use the federal E-Verify
program, and about 184,000 of the nation's 7 million to 8 million
employers use it.

It's a Web based system that checks a worker's information
against federal databases to determine U.S. employment eligibility.

(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
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