Bill Text: TX HB1117 | 2013-2014 | 83rd Legislature | Introduced
Bill Title: Relating to certain duties of employers voluntarily participating in the federal E-Verify program and of the Texas Workforce Commission in regard to the E-Verify program; providing civil penalties.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2013-02-25 - Referred to State Affairs [HB1117 Detail]
Download: Texas-2013-HB1117-Introduced.html
83R2713 KSD-F | ||
By: Davis of Dallas | H.B. No. 1117 |
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relating to certain duties of employers voluntarily participating | ||
in the federal E-Verify program and of the Texas Workforce | ||
Commission in regard to the E-Verify program; providing civil | ||
penalties. | ||
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
SECTION 1. Subtitle B, Title 2, Labor Code, is amended by | ||
adding Chapter 53 to read as follows: | ||
CHAPTER 53. VERIFICATION OF WORK AUTHORIZATION STATUS | ||
SUBCHAPTER A. GENERAL PROVISIONS | ||
Sec. 53.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter: | ||
(1) "Commission" means the Texas Workforce | ||
Commission. | ||
(2) "Employee" has the meaning assigned by Section | ||
21.002. | ||
(3) "Employer" has the meaning assigned by Section | ||
21.002. | ||
(4) "E-Verify program" means the electronic | ||
verification of work authorization program of the federal Illegal | ||
Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (Pub. | ||
L. No. 104-208, reprinted in note, 8 U.S.C. Section 1324a), | ||
operated by the United States Department of Homeland Security, or a | ||
successor work authorization program designated by the United | ||
States Department of Homeland Security or other federal agency | ||
authorized to verify the work authorization status of newly hired | ||
employees under the federal Immigration Reform and Control Act of | ||
1986 (8 U.S.C. Section 1101 et seq.). | ||
(5) "Governmental entity" means: | ||
(A) the state; or | ||
(B) a political subdivision of the state, | ||
including a municipality, a county, or any kind of district. | ||
(6) "License" means a license, certificate, | ||
registration, permit, or other authorization that: | ||
(A) is issued by a licensing authority; | ||
(B) is subject before expiration to renewal, | ||
suspension, revocation, forfeiture, or termination by a | ||
governmental entity that issues or renews a license; and | ||
(C) is required for a person to practice or | ||
engage in a particular business, occupation, or profession. | ||
Sec. 53.002. RULES. The commission shall adopt rules and | ||
prescribe forms to implement this chapter. The commission shall | ||
publish the proposed and adopted rules on the commission's website | ||
and in the Texas Register. | ||
[Sections 53.003-53.050 reserved for expansion] | ||
SUBCHAPTER B. DUTIES REGARDING E-VERIFY PROGRAM | ||
Sec. 53.051. COMMISSION DUTIES. The commission shall post | ||
in a prominent location on its website information or links to | ||
information from the United States Government Accountability | ||
Office or a similar reliable source independent of the United | ||
States Department of Homeland Security selected by the commission | ||
regarding: | ||
(1) the accuracy of the E-Verify program database; | ||
(2) the approximate financial burden and expenditure | ||
of time that using the E-Verify program imposes on an employer; and | ||
(3) an overview of an employer's duties under federal | ||
and state law regarding using the E-Verify program. | ||
Sec. 53.052. DUTIES OF EMPLOYER VOLUNTARILY PARTICIPATING | ||
IN E-VERIFY PROGRAM; VIOLATION. (a) Before voluntarily enrolling | ||
in the E-Verify program, an employer must consider consulting the | ||
commission's website to review current information on the accuracy | ||
of the program's database and an employer's legal duties in regard | ||
to participating in the program. | ||
(b) On initial enrollment in the E-Verify program, or, for | ||
an employer who enrolled in the program before September 1, 2011, as | ||
soon as practicable after that date, the employer must attest under | ||
penalty of perjury, in the manner and on a form prescribed by the | ||
commission and accessible on the commission's website, that: | ||
(1) the employer: | ||
(A) has received the E-Verify program training | ||
materials from the United States Department of Homeland Security; | ||
and | ||
(B) has posted in a prominent location in the | ||
employer's workplace visible to both prospective and current | ||
employees of the employer: | ||
(i) a notice from the United States | ||
Department of Homeland Security indicating that the employer is | ||
enrolled in the E-Verify program; and | ||
(ii) an antidiscrimination notice issued by | ||
the Office of Special Counsel for Immigration-Related Unfair | ||
Employment Practices of the Civil Rights Division of the United | ||
States Department of Justice; and | ||
(2) each of the employer's employees who will | ||
administer the program has completed the program's computer-based | ||
tutorial. | ||
(c) An employer shall maintain the signed original of the | ||
attestation form described by Subsection (b) and any documentation | ||
certifying completion of the E-Verify program's computer-based | ||
tutorial by the employer and its employees and make those documents | ||
available for inspection or copying by the commission at reasonable | ||
times. | ||
(d) An employer who participates in the E-Verify program | ||
shall ensure that: | ||
(1) the program is used by the employer and the | ||
employer's authorized employees for the sole purpose of verifying | ||
the employment authorization status of newly hired employees; and | ||
(2) any information accessible through the E-Verify | ||
program and the means of access to the program are not disseminated | ||
to any person other than to an authorized employee performing | ||
employment verification duties on behalf of the employer. | ||
(e) An employer enrolled in the E-Verify program violates | ||
this section if the employer: | ||
(1) fails to display the notices required by | ||
Subsection (b) in the manner prescribed by that subsection; | ||
(2) allows an employee to use an E-Verify program | ||
before completing the program's computer-based tutorial; | ||
(3) fails to take reasonable steps to prevent an | ||
employee from assuming another employee's E-Verify program user | ||
identification or password in order to circumvent completing the | ||
program's computer-based tutorial; | ||
(4) uses the E-Verify program to verify the employment | ||
eligibility of a job applicant before hiring the applicant or to | ||
otherwise use the program to screen an applicant before hiring and | ||
completing a Form I-9 in regard to the applicant; | ||
(5) accesses information through the E-Verify program | ||
regarding an individual who is not an employee of the employer; or | ||
(6) fails to safeguard the information accessible | ||
through the E-Verify program and the means of access to the program, | ||
including user identifications, passwords, and other privacy | ||
protections. | ||
[Sections 53.053-53.100 reserved for expansion] | ||
SUBCHAPTER C. ENFORCEMENT | ||
Sec. 53.101. COMMISSION INVESTIGATION; COMPLAINT | ||
RESOLUTION; CIVIL ACTION. (a) A person who has reason to believe | ||
that an employer has violated Section 53.052 may file a complaint | ||
with the commission in accordance with this section. | ||
(b) A complaint must: | ||
(1) be in writing on a form prescribed by the | ||
commission; and | ||
(2) be verified by the person making the complaint. | ||
(c) A person may file a complaint under this section: | ||
(1) in person at an office of the commission; or | ||
(2) by mailing the complaint to an address designated | ||
by the commission. | ||
(d) On receipt of a complaint, a staff member of the | ||
commission designated by the executive director shall investigate | ||
the complaint in an attempt to determine whether a violation of | ||
Section 53.052 occurred. If the staff member determines that there | ||
is no substantial evidence that the employer violated Section | ||
53.052, the commission shall dismiss the complaint and inform the | ||
complainant in writing by certified mail of the dismissal and of the | ||
complainant's right to file a civil action under Section 53.102. | ||
(e) If the staff member determines that there is substantial | ||
evidence that the employer violated Section 53.052, the commission | ||
shall endeavor to resolve the complaint by informal methods of | ||
conference, conciliation, and persuasion. | ||
(f) If the commission does not resolve the complaint under | ||
Subsection (e), the commission may commence a civil action in a | ||
court in the county in which the complainant resides or in which the | ||
complainant is employed to compel compliance by the employer. The | ||
commission shall recover court costs and reasonable attorney's fees | ||
in an action brought by the commission under this subsection. | ||
Sec. 53.102. CIVIL ACTION BY EMPLOYEE OR EMPLOYMENT | ||
APPLICANT. A person who is injured by an employer's violation of | ||
Section 53.052 may bring a civil action against the employer in a | ||
court in the county in which the complainant resides or in which the | ||
complainant is employed. | ||
Sec. 53.103. CIVIL PENALTY; DAMAGES; LICENSE SUSPENSION. | ||
On a finding that an employer violated Section 53.052, the court | ||
shall: | ||
(1) assess against the employer a civil penalty of not | ||
more than $200 per employee affected by the violation; | ||
(2) for a wilful and knowing violation or a second | ||
violation, assess against the employer a civil penalty of not more | ||
than $500 per employee affected by the violation; or | ||
(3) for a third or subsequent violation: | ||
(A) assess against the employer a civil penalty | ||
of not more than $1,000 per employee affected by the violation, as | ||
well as actual damages, court costs, and reasonable attorney's | ||
fees; and | ||
(B) order the suspension for at least 90 days of | ||
each license held by the employer. | ||
SECTION 2. Subchapter B, Chapter 21, Labor Code, is amended | ||
by adding Section 21.062 to read as follows: | ||
Sec. 21.062. DISCRIMINATION BY EMPLOYER PARTICIPATING IN | ||
E-VERIFY PROGRAM. (a) In this section, "E-Verify program" has the | ||
meaning assigned by Section 53.001. | ||
(b) An employer participating in the E-Verify program | ||
commits an unlawful employment practice if the employer refuses to | ||
hire, segregates, or acts with respect to recruitment, hiring, | ||
promotion, renewal of employment, selection for training or | ||
apprenticeship, discharge, discipline, tenure, or terms, | ||
privileges, or conditions of employment in regard to an individual | ||
without following the procedures of the E-Verify program. | ||
SECTION 3. Section 21.062, Labor Code, as added by this Act, | ||
applies to the conduct of an employer occurring on or after the | ||
effective date of this Act. Conduct occurring before that date is | ||
governed by the law in effect on the date the conduct occurred, and | ||
the former law is continued in effect for that purpose. | ||
SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2013. |