Mandatory Verification in the States: A Policy Research Agenda

This report examines E-Verify, the Internet-based program operated by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in partnership with the Social Security Administration (SSA). The program gives employers a means to electronically verify the work eligibility of newly hired employees. Employer participation in E-Verify is voluntary in most states, and the program is available to all employers across the country.

Some states have enacted legislation mandating the use of E-Verify by certain types of employers such as public contractors, state and local government agencies, public entities, or by all employers in the state, both public and private. Mandatory verification is one among the many types of state laws that have been enacted in reaction to the failure of immigration reform legislation in Congress in 2006 and again in 2007.

The report examines how mandatory verification measures have devolved to the states to enforce employer verification laws—a role that traditionally has been left to the federal government.