WASHINGTON, DC—Today the House Immigration Subcommittee will hold a hearing on the Representative Lamar Smith's "Legal Workforce Act," which would require every employer in the United States to use a new electronic employment verification system known as E-Verify to check the immigration status of everyone who applies for a job. Representative Xavier Becerra (CA-31), Vice Chair of the House Democratic Caucus, released the following statement on the legislation:

"At a time when we should be making it easier to hire out-of-work Americans, House Republicans have introduced a plan that would create more red-tape for job creators, forcing them to use an unreliable system to check the employment eligibility of their workers.

E-Verify, as employed today, is known to return false information that can result in unjustified firings and layoffs. It forces American workers through a burdensome and lengthy process when erroneous non-confirmations are returned to their employer. This puts their jobs at risk and encourages discriminatory hiring practices. One study estimates that as many as a million American workers could be forced to contest their status if this bill becomes law.

Let's focus on putting Americans back to work, not imposing new burdens on American workers and job creators."