Idaho House Advances Bill Requiring State and Local Governments to Use E-Verify

The Idaho House Business Committee recently advanced Senate Bill 1247, which would require all Idaho state and local governments, as well as large government contractors, to use the E-Verify system.

As the Idaho Capital Sun reported, the committee voted to send the measure to “general orders” for potential amendments.

If the House amends the bill and passes it with those amendments, the legislation would go back to the Senate for concurrence on those changes before heading to the desk of Gov. Brad Little for consideration, according to the Idaho Capital Sun.

Idaho legislators have proposed multiple bills “that aim to crack down on the hiring of unauthorized workers who are in the country illegally, including one that would mandate E-Verify’s use for all private employers,” wrote the publication’s Laura Guido, adding that another measure would create a new misdemeanor crime for hiring unauthorized workers.

SB 1247 would only apply to state and local government employment, as well as companies with at least 150 employees and a value of at least $100,000 that contract with Idaho government entities, Guido wrote.

Speaking to the committee, Rep. Josh Wheeler, who presented the bill, said that Senate Bill 1247 was meant to target employers that “are most likely to have existing HR departments with the capacity to handle some of the administrative burdens that the E-Verify system may impose on them.”