Washington Post - Supreme Court Upholds AZ Law Punishing Companies that Hire Illegal Immigrants

By Robert Barnes, Published: May 26

Arizona, the state at the forefront of efforts to crack down on illegal immigration, may revoke the business licenses of companies that knowingly employ undocumented workers, the Supreme Court ruled Thursday.

In a 5 to 3 vote, the court rejected arguments that control over illegal immigration is solely a federal responsibility and endorsed narrowly drawn state efforts to regulate the employment of those in the country illegally. Eight other states — Colorado, Mississippi, Missouri, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia — have passed similar laws that would punish companies for hiring undocumented workers.

Arizona’s provisions “fall squarely” into an exception in the federal immigration law that Congress wrote in 1986, Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. said. . . .

. . . . Jay Sekulow, chief counsel of the conservative American Center for Law and Justice, said the court’s decision “provides a realistic road map for states to take appropriate action in enacting legislation that is constitutional.”. . .

The entire story is posted here.