STRAIGHT FROM THE SENATE
Hoosier lawmakers committed to remedies protecting taxpayers, human rights
America is a nation of immigrants, but also a nation of laws. Respect for the rule of law and assigning appropriate penalties if and when needed were catalysts for this Session’s discussions on illegal immigration.
Once seen exclusively as a federal issue, decades of Washington-beltway gridlock on illegal immigration have caused a growing number of states to search for their own solutions. Indiana this year joined ranks with dozens of states in reviewing statutes and policies in hopes of protecting taxpayers as well as human rights.
Indiana’s legislation aimed to address employers who knowingly hire illegal immigrants and those who profit from harboring or transporting them. Our bill was as simple as supply and demand: If we don’t supply jobs to illegal aliens, there will be no demand for them to come here unlawfully. Critics disagreed, claiming the bill was discriminatory against all immigrants – legal and illegal – and forced employers to police what some dispute are strains on public services and taxpayers.
Ultimately, differences on specific wording could not be worked out. Yet many Indiana legislators, including myself, remain committed to addressing the issue. We will not idly stand by and let our Statehouse suffer the same stalemate as our federal counterparts.
Republican state senators are calling for a continued discussion to address this important issue as it affects Indiana. We encourage an in-depth, bipartisan effort to identify fair remedies that will pass Constitutional challenges. Our hope is to separate fact from fiction, logic from emotion, and craft legislation all Hoosiers – native born and naturalized – can be proud to call our own.
Sen. David Long (R-Fort Wayne) is President Pro-Tem of the Indiana Senate. He serves District 16, which includes portions of Fort Wayne.
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