Judge blocks anti-illegal immigrant bill Lawmakers clash over tactics that will cost taxpayers to defend
By Edward J. Hunt
April 30, 2008 | 05:45 PM The controversy over a proposed law that would require contractors in Suffolk County to verify their employees' immigration status will continue to rage for a least another month. Supporters and opponents of the law packed the Suffolk County Legislature auditorium in Smithtown Tuesday to voice their opinions, but all left without satisfaction after Suffolk District Court Judge Carol Mackenzie issued an injunction that prevented the Legislature from voting on the measure. The ruling was a result of Legislator Ricardo Montano's (D-Central Islip) petition based on his contention that the bill passed out of the Consumer Protection Committee on an improper vote. The injunction angered Legislature Presiding Officer Bill Lindsay (D-Holbrook), who opened the afternoon session commenting on Montano's legal action. "The order resulted from legal action instituted by Legislator Montano," said Lindsay. "I want to state for the record that I am disappointed that the County of Suffolk will have to expend monies during these difficult economic times to hire outside counsel to represent the Legislature in the court proceedings." The presiding officer concluded, "I believe the judge overstepped her bounds when she stopped the democratic process as has happened here today." "May I be heard, Mr. Speaker?" asked Montano following Lindsay's statement. "No, sir," Lindsay responded. "Are you going to deny me the opportunity to respond to your comments, Mr. Lindsay?" asked Montano. "Yes," Lindsay replied. The law, introduced earlier this year by Legislator Brian Beedenbender (D-Centereach), would require county-licensed contractors, such as plumbers and electricians, to verify that their employees are not in the country illegally in order to secure county contracts. Beedenbender maintains that it will level the playing field for contractors that hire legal workers and pay taxes for those employees, such as workers compensation. Unscrupulous contractors, says Beedenbender, can avoid paying taxes by hiring undocumented workers and therefore can place lower bids on county contracts because their overhead costs are much lower. Reacting to the injunction, Beedenbender said, "For a judge to tell a legislature that they can't act on something is a really dangerous precedent. It's one thing for a court to say a law that was passed is illegal. It's quite another to tell elected officials, representatives of the people, that they can't vote." "It's unfortunate," he added, "because this is what gives government a bad name when we play these petty games." Montano defended his action. "It is very clear that [the bill] was improperly discharged from committee. You need a majority of the entire membership of the committee. You need four votes to get the bill out, it only got three and it should not have placed on the calendar. Unfortunately, I was forced to take a position that we shouldn't be voting on legislation that hasn't been properly discharged." "Irrespective of whether you agree with the bill or not," he continued, "you can't take a bill out of committee without the proper procedure. I will not tolerate or sanction violating our own rules to get a bill on the floor for political purposes, and that what was done in this case." In an effort to avoid the controversy surrounding the bill, Majority Leader Jon Cooper (D-Huntington) last week introduced a bill similar to Beedenbender's, but without the requirement for employers to verify workers' immigration status. Cooper believes that by requiring contractors to pay minimum wage, workers compensation, and social security taxes in order to receive their licenses — a stipulation in both bills — is sufficient to "level the playing field" between employers that "play by the rules" and contractors that hire undocumented workers to avoid taxes and gain an unfair competitive advantage. Cooper called the immigration status verification portion of Beedenbender's bill "unenforceable" due to the ease of obtaining fake identification and was causing unnecessary disagreement among county lawmakers. The court injunction blocks a vote on the bill until May 15, two days after the next meeting of the Legislature. A vote on both the Beedenbender resolution and Cooper's could occur at the June 10 meeting. In the meantime, Cooper intends to attempt a compromise and plans to meet with Beedenbender "Thursday or Friday" to discuss the issue.