Illegal immigration.

WORKING DRAFT
2009
STATE OF
WYOMING
09LSO-0019

HOUSE BILL
NO.
HB0103

Illegal immigration.

Sponsored by:
Representative(s) Illoway, Petersen and Zwonitzer, Dn. and Senator(s) Anderson, J., Cooper and Martin

A BILL

for

AN ACT relating to
illegal immigration;
establishing an offense for transportation or concealment of illegal aliens; requiring certain employers to verify the citizenship status of employees;
establishing an offense for hiring unauthorized aliens or failing to verify the citizenship status of employees; providing for penalties;
requiring state agencies and political subdivisions to verify the citizenship status of applicants for certain public benefits; requiring a report; authorizing the attorney general to negotiate a memorandum of understanding regarding immigration with the appropriate federal agency; establishing rules for the communication of information related to immigration status; requiring the determination of the immigration status of certain prisoners; requiring certain documentation for the issuance of a driver's license or identification card; requiring rulemaking
;
and providing for an effective date.

Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of
Wyoming
:

Section 1.

W.S. 6
‑
5
‑
2
14 and 9
‑
16
‑
101 through 9
‑
16
‑
105
are created to read:

6
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5
‑
214.

Transportation or concealment of illegal

aliens.

(a)

No person shall transport, move or attempt to transport in the state of
Wyoming
any alien knowing or in reckless disregard of the fact that the alien has come to, entered or remained in the
United States
in violation of law, in furtherance of the illegal presence of the alien in the
United States
.

(b)

No person shall conceal, harbor or shelter from detection any alien in any place within the state of Wyoming, including any building or means of transportation, knowing or in reckless disregard of the fact that the alien has come to, entered or remained in the United States in violation of law.

(c)

Any person violating this section shall, upon conviction, be guilty of a felony punishable by imprisonment for not less than one (1) year nor more than two (2) years, a fine of not less than one thousand dollars ($1,000.00) nor more than five thousand dollars ($5,000.00), or both.

CHAPTER 16
ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION

9
-16-101.

Definitions.

(a)

As used in this chapter:

(i)

"Public employer" means
ever
y department, agency or
other
instrumentality of the state or a political subdivision of the state;

(ii)

"Status verification system" means an electronic system operated by the federal government, through which an
employer or an
authorized official of an agency of the state of Wyoming or of a political subdivision of Wyoming may make an inquiry, by exercise of authority delegated pursuant to 8 U.S.C. § 1373, to verify or ascertain the citizenship or immigration status of any individual within the jurisdiction of the agency for any purpose authorized by W.S. 9
‑
16
‑
102. "Status verification system" includes the electronic verification of work authorization program of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigration Responsibility Act of 1996, P.L. 104-208, Division C, Section 403(a); 8 U.S.C. § 1324a, and operated by the United States department of homeland security, known as the basic pilot program, or any equivalent federal work authorization program designated by the United States department of homeland security or any other federal agency authorized to verify the work authorization status of newly hired employees, pursuant to the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986, P.L. 99-603;

(iii)

"Subcontractor" includes a subcontractor, contract employee, staffing agency or any contractor regardless of its tier;

(iv)

"Unauthorized alien" means an alien as defined in 8 U.S.C. § 1324a(h)(3).

9
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16
‑
102.

Status verification system.

(a)

Subject to subsection (b) of this section, each
employer
in this state
shall register and

participate in the status verification system to verify the

work authorization status of all new employees.

(b)

The requirements of subsection (a) of this section must be satisfied:

(i)

Not more than one (1) year after the effective date of this act for:

(A)

Public employers;
and

(B)

Employers who contract with public emp
loyers pursuant to subsection (e
) of this section
.

(ii)

Not more than two (2) years after the effective date of this act for
e
mployers who employ two hundred fifty (250)
or more
individuals in this state
;
and

(ii
i
)

Not more than
three (3
) years after the effective date of this act for employers who employ one (1) or more individuals in this state.

(c)

Nothing in this section shall be construed as preventing an employer that is not immediately required to comply with the provisions of subsections (a) and (b) of this section from voluntarily participating in the status verification system.

(d
)

No public employer shall enter into a contract

for the physical performance of services within this state

unless the contractor registers and participates in the

status verification system to verify the work authorization

status of all new employees.

(e
)

No contractor or subcontractor who enters a

contract with a public employer shall enter into such a

contract or subcontract in connection with the physical

performance of services within this state unless the

contractor or subcontractor registers and participates in

the status verification system to verify information of all

new employees.

(
f
)

The provisions of this section shall be enforced

without regard to race or national origin.

(
g
)

The department of employment shall prescribe

forms and promulgate rules and regulations necessary for

the administration of this section.

9
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16
‑
103.

Penalty.

(a)

Any person who knowingly hires, recruits or refers for a fee an unauthorized alien
shall upon conviction be
subject to a fine
for each unauthorized alien
of not less than
:

(i)

Three
hundred
seventy
-
five dollars ($375
.00) and not more than
three
thousand
two hundred
dollars ($3
,2
00.00)
for the first offense;

(ii)

Three thousand two hundred dollars ($3,200.00) and not more than six thousand five hundred dollars ($6,500.00) for the second offense; and

(iii)

Four thousand three hundred dollars ($4,300.00) and not more than sixteen thousand dollars ($16,000.00) for the third or subsequent offense.

(b)

Any person who fails to comply with employment verification as required by W.S. 9
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16
‑
102
shall upon conviction be
subject to a fine of not less than one hundred
ten dollars ($11
0.00) and not more than one thousand
one hundred dollars ($1,1
00.00) for each person with respect to whom such violation occurred
for the first offense
.

9
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16
‑
104
.

Public benefits.

(a)

Except as provided by subsection (c) of this

section or where exempted by federal law, each agency or

political subdivision of this state shall verify the lawful

presence in the United States of any natural person

fourteen (14) years of age or older who has applied for

state or local benefits as defined in 8 U.S.C. § 1621(c),

or for federal public benefits as defined in 8 U.S.C. §

1611(c) that are administered by an agency or political

subdivision of this state.

(b)

The provisions of this section shall be enforced

without r
egard
to race, religion, gender, ethnicity or

national origin.

(c)

Verification of lawful presence under the

provisions of this section shall not be required for:

(i)

Any purpose if lawful presence in the
United

States
is not restricted by law, ordinance or regulation;

(ii)

Assistance for health care items and

services that are necessary for the treatment of an

emergency medical condition, as defined in 42 U.S.C. §

1396b(v)(3) if the items or services are not related to an

organ transplant procedure;

(iii)

Short term, noncash, in-kind emergency

disaster relief;

(iv)

Public health assistance for immunizations

with respect to diseases and for testing and treatment of

symptoms of communicable diseases whether or not such

symptoms are caused by a communicable disease; or

(v)

Programs, services or assistance such as

soup kitchens, crisis counseling and intervention and

short-term shelters which:

(A)

Deliver in-kind services at the

community level including through public or private

nonprofit agencies;

(B)

Do not condition the provision of

assistance, amount of assistance or cost of assistance on

the income or resources of the recipient; and

(C)

Are necessary for the protection of life or safety.

(d)

For verification of the lawful presence of an

applicant in the United States, the agency or political

subdivision required to make such verification shall

provide notary public services at no cost to the applicant

and require that the applicant execute an affidavit under

penalty of perjury that:

(i)

He is a
United States
citizen; or

(ii)

He is a qualified alien under the federal

Immigration and Nationality Act, and is lawfully present in

the
United States
.

(e)

For any applicant who has executed an affidavit

pursuant to paragraph (d)(ii) of this section, eligibility

for benefits shall be determined through the systematic

alien verification of entitlement program operated by the

United States
department of homeland security or a

successor program designated by the
United States

department of homeland security. Until such eligibility

verification is made, an affidavit executed pursuant to

subsection (d) of this section may be presumed to be proof

of lawful presence in the
United States
for the purposes of

this section.

(f)

Any person who knowingly makes a false or

fraudulent statement of representation in an affidavit

executed pursuant to subsection (d) of this section shall

be subject to criminal penalties under W.S. 6
‑
5
‑
303(a).

If the affidavit constitutes a false claim of
United States

citizenship under 18 U.S.C. § 911, a complaint shall be

filed by the agency or political subdivision which required

the affidavit with the
United States
attorney for the

district in which the affidavit was executed.

(g)

An agency or political subdivision may adopt

variations to the requirements of this section if the

agency or political subdivision can demonstrate that the

variation improves the efficiency of or reduces any delay

in the verification process or to provide for the

adjudication of unique individual circumstances where the verification procedures in this section would impose a

hardship on a legal resident of this state.

(h)

No agency or political subdivision of this state

shall provide any state, local or federal benefit as

defined in 8 U.S.C. § 1611 or 1621 in violation of the

provisions of this section.

(j)

The attorney general, the department of health, the department of workforce services, the department of employment and the department of family services
shall
each
provide an annual report to the governor, the speaker of the house and the

president of the senate with respect to its compliance with

the provisions of this section. Each agency or political subdivision of this state subject to the provisions of this section
shall monitor the systematic alien verification

of entitlement program for errors and significant delays

and report
to the governor, the speaker of the house and the president of the senate
any recommendations
which
would
help
ensure that the

systematic alien verification of entitlement program is not

erroneously denying benefits to legal residents of Wyoming.

Any error discovered pursuant to this subsection shall also

be reported to the
United States
department of homeland

security.

9
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16
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105
.

Memorandum of understanding; communication

of immigration status.

(a)

The attorney general is authorized and directed

to negotiate the terms of a memorandum of understanding

between the state of Wyoming and the United States department of justice or the United States department of

homeland security, as provided by 8 U.S.C. § 1357(g),

concerning the enforcement of federal immigration and

custom laws, detentions and removals and investigations in

the state of Wyoming.

(b)

The memorandum of understanding negotiated

pursuant to subsection (a) of this section shall be signed

on behalf of this state by the attorney general and the governor or as otherwise required by the appropriate

federal agency.

(c)

No local government, whether acting through its

governing body or by an initiative, referendum or any other

process, shall enact any ordinance or policy that limits or

prohibits a law enforcement officer, local official or

local government employee from communicating or cooperating

with federal officials with regard to the immigration

status of any person within this state.

(d)

Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no

government entity or official within the state of
Wyoming

may prohibit or in any way restrict any government entity

or official from sending to, or receiving from, the
United

States
department of homeland security information

regarding the citizenship or immigration status, lawful or

unlawful, of any individual.

(e)

Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no

person or agency may prohibit or in any way restrict a

public employee from doing any of the following with

respect to information regarding the immigration status,

lawful or unlawful, of any individual:

(i)

Sending information related to immigration

status to, or requesting or receiving such information from

the
United States
department of homeland security;

(ii)

Maintaining information related to

immigration status; or

(iii)

Exchanging such information with any other

federal, state or local government entity.

(f)

The provisions of this section shall allow for a

private right of action by any natural or legal person

lawfully domiciled in this state to file for a writ of

mandamus to compel any noncooperating local state

governmental agency to comply with such reporting laws.

Section 2.

W.S. 7
‑
13
‑
104,
31
‑
7
‑
111 by creating new subsections (g) through (k) and 31
‑
8
‑
101 by creating new subsections (c) through (f) are amended to read:

7
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13
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104.

Record of prisoners.

(a)

The department of corrections shall keep a complete record of the background and current status of all prisoners sentenced and confined in any state penal institution. The administrator of the institution where a prisoner is incarcerated, the division of criminal investigation, and the clerk of court and sheriff of the county from which the prisoner is committed shall, at the request of the department or the board of parole, furnish any information in their possession relating to the prisoner or the offense committed.

(b)

When a person charged with a felony or with driving or having control of a vehicle while under the

influence pursuant to W.S. 31
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5
‑
233 is confined, for any

period, in a county jail or a state penal institution, a

reasonable effort shall be made to determine the

citizenship status of the person. If verification of

lawful status cannot be made from documents in the

possession of the prisoner, verification shall be made

within forty-eight (48) hours through a query to the law

enforcement support center of the
United States
department

of homeland security or other office or agency designated

for that purpose by the
United States
department of

homeland security. If the lawful immigration status of a

prisoner cannot be verified, the administrator of the

institution or other officer shall notify the
United States

department of homeland security.

31
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7
‑
111.

Application for license or permit generally.

(g)

Except as otherwise provided in subsection (h) of this section, no person shall be issued a driver's license unless the person is a
United States
citizen, national or legal permanent resident alien.

(h)

The provisions of subsection (g) of this section shall not apply if an applicant presents, in person, valid documentary evidence of:

(i)

Unexpired immigrant or nonimmigrant visa status for admission into the
United States
;

(ii)

A pending or approved application for asylum in the
United States
;

(iii)

Admission into the
United States
in refugee status;

(iv)

A pending or approved application for temporary protected status in the
United States
;

(v)

Approved deferred action status; or

(vi)

A pending application for adjustment of status to legal permanent residence status or conditional resident status.

(j)

If an applicant provides evidence under subsection (h) of this section, a license issued pursuant to this chapter shall be valid only during the period of time of the authorized stay of the applicant in the United States or if there is no definite end to the period of authorized stay, a period of one (1) year. A license issued pursuant to this subsection:

(i)

Shall clearly indicate that it is temporary and state the date on which it will expire; and

(ii)

May be renewed only upon presentation of valid documentary evidence that the status by which the applicant qualified for the identification is still in effect or has been extended by the appropriate federal agency.

(k)

When an application is made for renewal or replacement of a driver's license, the license shall be presumed to have been issued in accordance with subsection (h) of this section provided that, at the time the application is made, the license has not expired or been cancelled, suspended or revoked. If the division is
no
tified by a local, state or federal government agency of

a reasonable suspicion that the individual seeking renewal

or replacement is present in the United States in violation

of law, the provisions of subsection (h) of this section

apply to the renewal or replacement of the license.

31
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8
‑
101.

Issuance to residents by department; restrictions.

(c
)

Except as oth
erwise provided in subsection (d
) of this section, no person shall be issued
an
identification
card
unless the person is a
United States
citizen, national or legal permanent resident alien.

(d
)

The provisions of subsection (c
) of this section shall not apply if an applicant presents, in person, valid documentary evidence of:

(i)

Unexpired immigrant or nonimmigrant visa status for admission into the
United States
;

(ii)

A pending or approved application for asylum in the
United States
;

(iii)

Admission into the
United States
in refugee status;

(iv)

A pending or approved application for temporary protected status in the
United States
;

(v)

Approved deferred action status; or

(vi)

A pending application for adjustment of status to legal permanent residence status or conditional resident status.

(e
)

If an applicant provides evidence under
subsection (d
) of this section, a
n

identification card issued
pursuant to this chapter shall be valid only during the period of time of the authorized stay of the applicant in the United States or if there is no definite end to the period of authorized stay, a period of one (1) year. A
n
identification
card
issued pursuant to this subsection:

(i)

Shall clearly indicate that it is temporary and state the date on which it will expire; and

(ii)

May be renewed only upon presentation of valid documentary evidence that the status by which the applicant qualified for the identification is still in effect or has been extended by the appropriate federal agency.

(f
)

When an application is made for renewal or replacement of
an identification card
, the
card
shall be presumed to have been issued
in accordance with subsection (d
) of this section provided that, at the time the application is made, the
card
has not expired or been cancelled, suspended or revoked. If the division is notified by a local, state or federal government agency of a reasonable suspicion that the individual seeking renewal or replacement is present in the United States in violation of law, the provisions of subsection (
d
) of this section apply to the renewal or replacement of the
card
.

Section 3.

Th
is act is effective July 1, 2010
.

(END)

1
HB0103