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E-Verify Self Check system begins

by Erin Kelly and Jahna Berry - Mar. 21, 2011 06:28 PM

The Arizona Republic

WASHINGTON - Much like the way people can check their own credit score, residents of five states and the District of Columbia now can check their own records in a government database that many employers consult to see if workers are legal U.S. residents or citizens.

The free program, announced Monday by Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, lets workers discover errors in the E-Verify system and correct them. [And it probably also notifies the cops of any person who is suspected to be an illegal] Some have criticized the program, which is mandatory for employers in Arizona, as error-prone and unreliable.

The government says E-Verify has a high accuracy rate and is being improved.

E-Verify Self Check is available in Arizona, Idaho, Colorado, Mississippi, Virginia and D.C. It will expand to include about 16 states in fiscal 2012, which begins Oct. 1.

After that, Homeland Security officials hope to roll it out nationwide.

"The E-Verify Self Check service will help protect workers [Bullsh*t! It will help the police arrest illegal workers!] and streamline the E-Verify process for businesses," Napolitano said.

The Self Check program will cost about $3.2 million, said Bill Wright, a spokesman for U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.

Congress provided $30 million for E-Verify for the 2010 fiscal year and directed that a portion of that money be used to develop a self-check tool, Wright said.

The federal government's E-Verify database is meant to help prevent employers from hiring illegal immigrants.

More than 250,000 employers use E-Verify at about 850,000 worksites, said Alejandro Mayorkas, director of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. He said about 1,200 new employers sign up for the program each week.

The federal government does not require employers to use E-Verify. However, Arizona and about a dozen other states have passed state laws mandating its use. The U.S. Supreme Court is reviewing the constitutionality of Arizona's law.

E-Verify, which taps into Social Security Administration and immigration records, accurately confirms employment eligibility more than 96 percent of the time, Mayorkas said. [Which means that almost 1 out of every 20 records is incorrect]

In Arizona, some of those familiar with Self Check were optimistic about the program, but said that it raises a few concerns.

The program could help Arizona employers and job applicants save time, said Garrick Taylor, communications director for the Arizona Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

"The Self Check program will clear up any potential bureaucratic issues before they reach the employer's desk - for example, typos or name changes that have gone unreported," Taylor said. "Things that could be easily dealt with by the employee will now, hopefully, not be a burden on the employer."

The system also will help address complaints from workers who have been denied employment even though they are U.S. citizens or have been authorized to work, immigration attorneys say.

While the percentage is small, as more employers use E-Verify that percentage encompasses more and more people, they say.

There are potential issues.

While there are safeguards in the system, some experts worry that identity thieves will use Self Check to create effective fraudulent documents that will be more difficult for employers to detect.

"I do think what they are doing is laudable. The concern, I would say is that, 'Are we absolutely sure that the bad guys can't use this to trick the system?' " said Bonnie Gibson, a Phoenix immigration attorney.

Also, it is possible that an employer who checks the database a few weeks after an individual updates it could receive different information, said Julie Pace a Phoenix immigration attorney. because information is being added to the system constantly.

While the government says that employers can't force job applicants or existing employees to run Self Check as a "poor man's E-Verify," it may be difficult for the government to prevent that, Gibson said.

If an employer asks an individual to run a Self Check, the individual should call the Department of Justice's Office of Special Counsel for Immigration-Related Unfair Employment Practices at 800-255-7688.

Despite its weaknesses, E-Verify remains an important tool to prevent companies from hiring illegal immigrants.

"We believe E-Verify is a very accurate tool, and the most effective tool we have," Mayorkas said at the news conference with Napolitano.

When job seekers are incorrectly deemed ineligible, it's often because they've married, changed their last names and failed to notify Social Security or immigration agencies, Mayorkas said.

By checking their status online, workers can catch problems or mistakes and resolve them before applying for a job, he said.

Job seekers can enter their name, address and date of birth at an online site, www.uscis.gov/everify, where they will confirm their identity by answering demographic and financial questions from a third-party identity-assurance service that contracts with the federal government.

The questions and answers included in the identity-assurance quiz are not shared beyond the user and the independent service. [I suspect they are lying. The police will probably be told about anyone who the system thinks is an illegal. Weather the cops will have enough resources to hunt down every one who is an illegal that uses the system is another question ] Homeland Security is notified only that a user's identity is verified.

Users then enter their Social Security number and citizenship status. E-Verify Self Check will check users' information against Social Security and Homeland Security databases and tell the users whether they are eligible to work in the U.S.

The information will not be shared with potential employers or anyone else, Homeland Security officials said. [ Yea sure! Do you really think you can trust the government? We are told the census data is super secret and private. But in World War II they used the census data to round up Americans of Japanese descent and place them in concentration camps! ]

Users who are told they are not eligible for employment are given instructions in English and Spanish on how to resolve a potential data mismatch in their Social Security or immigration records. [I suspect that the police databases and computers will be updated with any information the these people enter when they verify their status]

Asked whether the continuing improvements to E-Verify are aimed at making the program mandatory for employers nationwide, Mayorkas said that power rests with Congress.

Congress has been reluctant to act, although supporters of comprehensive immigration reform say E-Verify must become mandatory to block access to jobs by illegal immigrants and cut off their main reason for coming to this country.

Some business groups oppose a mandatory system, fearing it will be burdensome and costly, especially if it requires them to confirm the status of existing employees and not just new hires. [So screw that thing about being innocent until proven guilty. You are now guilty till proven innocent and can't get a job until you prove you are NOT a criminal]

Some labor and immigrant groups also oppose making E-Verify mandatory, saying the system makes too many errors and could hurt lawful workers.

For more information on the program, visit www.uscis.gov/everify or call the E-Verify Employee Hotline at 888-897-7781.