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U.S. Chamber of Commerce Challenges Arizona Law in Supreme Court

August 3, 2009 | In the News

On July 24th the U.S. Chamber of Commerce along with the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and a coalition of cheap labor and immigrant interest groups filed a petition for certiorari with the U.S. Supreme Court asking them to overturn the Ninth Circuit’s favorable ruling in Chicanos Por LaCausa v. Napolitano. In that case the Ninth Circuit found that the Legal Arizona Worker’s Act was not preempted by federal law. This law, among other things, prohibits the hiring of illegal aliens and requires Arizona employers to use E-Verify. Noncompliance with the law could result terminate the business licenses of those employers who hire illegal aliens.

The Chamber argues, in their brief, that state laws governing immigration issues create a “crazy-quilt” patchwork system of laws around the country that is unfair to both employers and employees. Additionally, the petition claims that federal law completely preempts such state and local laws.

The Chamber of Commerce and the ACLU argue that state and local governments cannot legislate in the area of employment enforcement. The legal term for this argument is “field preemption.” However this claim that only a small cadre of federal agents can participate in the enforcement of citizenship and immigration laws is contradicted by the plain language of the federal code, which expressly authorized a system of cooperative federalism that describes the areas in which states and localities may act. It is this system that creates an amazingly uniform system of state and local laws. Neither the Supreme Court nor any federal appeals court has ever agreed with the Chamber’s theory.

The petition also recognized that laws such as Arizona’s are very popular with the electorate, claiming, “In the first three months of 2009 alone, over 1,000 immigration-related bills and resolutions were introduced in all 50 states. At least 150 of these bills related specifically to employment, and 40 such bills have been enacted in 28 states since 2007.” Such a statement is an ironic testament to the work of IRLI with legislators all over the country, for whom IRLI’s model legislation has become an important baseline for state legislatures. One of IRLI’s main charitable purposes is to advise the citizenry on the proper form for effective laws that will not conflict with the federal code. The model laws are available here.

[Republished from the Immigration Reform Law Institute "State and Local Legislation Bulletin," Issue 26. IRLI is a public interest law firm that provides technical legislative and legal defense services to assist state and local jurisdictions draft and defend laws that are worded appropriately, protect principles of federalism and the liberties of citizens, and respect the constitutional rights of all. Until the federal government effectively enforces our immigration laws, it is in citizens' best interest that states and cities play an active and cooperative role. IRLI is a nonpartisan 501(c)(3) educational charity. Donations to support IRLI's legal advocacy work are tax-deductible and can now be made on-line.