Illegal Immigration - Part 3

Illegal Immigration, Part 3

A short while after I finished my post earlier today of ‘Part 2’, I had an appointment with the Emporia City Attorney. Our meeting was both cordial and informative. I explained the major tenants of what I sought to do and we discussed them both from the standpoint of intent and purpose and also regarding areas that were unavailable as far as enforcement would be concerned.

I and a few other men have collectively been very concerned with the direction the federal, state, and local governments have been trying to lead concerning immigration, health care, Medicare, social security, education, oil prices & production, and many other related issues to name only a few. A few weeks ago I heard on a talk radio program how a small town in Pennsylvania was “taking the bull by the horns” so to speak as a result of having to face these same issues. When I pulled up their website, I discovered their city was about the same size as Emporia and had taken steps to cope with these problems thru adoption of a ordinance by unanimous vote by the city council.

I agreed to meet with the City attorney to be briefed on the detailed procedures, which would bring this before our city council, as well as the procedures that would be necessary in the event the council did not adopt it. He was very well informed and shared each step necessary including the collection of petitions and the various necessary requirements for the various elements the petition must contain as well as the number of signers.

Having written down all of these requirements, I was prepared to leave when he said there were a few other things I should know concerning putting such an ordinance in place here in Emporia. I was somewhat amused and reminded of the old axiom of ‘I was about to hear the other shoe fall’ on this subject. I greatly respect his willingness to share so that one doesn’t have surprises in the event our decision is to continue in our effort. He explained that our city does not have regulations concerning hiring practices, housing, rental contacts, who may rent and who can’t, do not have restrictions for identifying illegal individuals, and many of the other restrictions identified in the Hazelton document. He also shared that until recently there were no provisions to incarcerate illegal individuals. Since the city would have to pick up the cost of placing them in confinement, they had to let them go. You may wish to peruse this website to see for yourself what action they took concerning these issues.

This is where the effort brought us as of this date. I am sure the problems are not going away but our next step(s) must be more than one person’s effort. Don’t touch that dial. Stay tuned. I will keep you informed of the situation.