[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 2 (Friday, January 5, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E3-E4]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   INTRODUCTION OF ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION AND IDENTITY THEFT LEGISLATION

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. ELTON GALLEGLY

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Thursday, January 4, 2007

  Mr. GALLEGLY. Madam Speaker, today I introduced six bills that focus 
on the problems of illegal immigration and identity theft.
  The first priority for this new Congress and any Congress, for that 
matter, should be to reduce the high levels of illegal immigrants 
entering this nation. This is a problem that goes directly to our 
responsibilities as a sovereign nation to secure our borders and 
enforce our laws.
  Two of my bills address the crux of the illegal immigration problem 
in the United States. We know that most illegal immigrants come here 
looking for work. If we stop illegal workers from gaining employment, 
they would be less likely to enter our country illegally in the first 
place
  To get a job, a person must provide his employer with a social 
security number. In many cases, an illegal immigrant simply provides a 
name and a fictitious social security number. Too often, an illegal 
immigrant has adopted the identity of a hard working American who is 
unaware that his identity has been stolen until he is refused a loan or 
contacted by an irate creditor.
  The federal government currently has the capability to deter identity 
theft. Every year, employers have to file W-2 forms with the Social 
Security Administration that include the names, social security numbers 
and addresses of their workers.
  Today, when the Social Security Administration receives multiple W-2 
forms with the same social security number and different names and/or 
addresses, it simply ignores it, even when it is obvious that more than 
one person is using a Social Security number!
  In other cases, when an employer files a W-2 with a name and Social 
Security number that does not match, the government simply mails the 
worker a letter explaining the discrepancy. That's it. The Social 
Security Administration does little to no follow-up. This has led to 
many discrepancies that the Social Security Administration has yet to 
resolve. In fact, a GAO report found that as of November 2004, there 
were 246 million unresolved discrepancies--involving $463 billion--
dating back to 1937, the beginning of the Social Security program.
  My legislation would change that.
  The Employment Eligibility Verification and Anti-Identity Theft Act 
would require workers to resolve discrepancies if their names and 
Social Security numbers do not match. Employers would have to terminate 
workers who do not resolve discrepancies. The Social Security 
Administration would also be required to notify the Department of 
Homeland Security so it can investigate whether a crime has been 
committed.
  The Identity Theft Notification Act of 2007 would require the Social 
Security Administration to investigate if it receives more than eight 
(8) separate W -2 forms with the same Social Security number if the 
number corresponds with four (4) different addresses in a single year. 
If the Social Security Administration finds

[[Page E4]]

evidence of fraudulent activity, it is required to notify not only the 
Department of Homeland Security, but also the legal possessor of that 
Social Security number. This will enable innocent people to take steps 
to protect their credit, identity, and good name.
  Although jobs are the primary magnets that bring illegal immigrants 
to this country, I have also introduced another bill that will remove a 
major incentive for people to come to this country illegally.
  The Citizenship Reform Act of 2007 would simply bring our laws into 
line with virtually every other nation on earth by requiring that at 
least one parent be a citizen or permanent resident in order for a 
child to become automatically a citizen.
  Additionally, I have also introduced a bill that will make our 
current immigration law more fair. Under current law, an illegal 
immigrant who leaves the country faces a bar of up to three years if he 
has been in the country illegally for more than 6 months, and a ten 
year bar if he has been here illegally for more than a year. However, 
if an illegal immigrant never leaves the country but applies to adjust 
his status, he faces no reentry prohibitions. This is fundamentally 
unfair. My legislation provides that all illegal immigrants face the 
same penalty--even if they are eligible for a change in status.
  Finally, I have introduced two bills that would criminalize actions 
common among illegal immigrants.
  Unfortunately, many illegal immigrants who are apprehended and agree 
to voluntarily depart either fail to leave or leave only to return. My 
bill would make it a felony, with a mandatory one year jail sentence, 
for illegal immigrants agree to leave and then either fail to leave or 
return illegally.
  I have also found that too many illegal immigrants have figured out 
that they are given a ``get out of jail free card'' when they are given 
a notice to appear. Another bill I have introduced would make it a 
felony, with a mandatory one-year jail sentence, when illegal 
immigrants ignore the law and refuse to appear in court when ordered.
  I know that these bills, if passed, will dramatically reduce illegal 
immigration and identity theft. I ask my colleagues for their support 
to protect our nation's sovereignty and our citizens' identities.

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