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By Don Jenkins, Capital Press

Producers fear ‘administrative landmine’ legislation would create for farmers Washington farms would face stiff fines for not notifying illegal aliens they are being investigated by federal immigration agents under legislation proposed by state Attorney General Nick Brown.

At Brown’s request, House and Senate Democrats introduced Dec. 8 the Immigrant Worker Protection Act. The bill also would bar employers from allowing immigration officials to inspect payroll records without a court order. 

“What we’re seeing from this (Trump) administration is a campaign of fear that’s left many people scared to go to work,” Brown said in a statement.

Washington law prohibits police departments and sheriff’s offices from cooperating with immigration enforcement agents. The U.S. Attorney’s Office lists Washington as a sanctuary state with laws that impede enforcement of immigration laws.  

House Bill 2105 and the identical Senate Bill 5852 would put new requirements on employers to alert workers to “I-9 audits.” I-9 refers to the form employees sign attesting they are authorized to work in the U.S. Lying on the form is a federal crime.  

If immigration officials start an audit, Washington employers would have 72 hours to notify workers, according to the bill.  The employer also would have 72 hours to notify employees about the results of the audit.

Brown’s bill bars employers from “threatening to take, or taking action, based upon the immigration status of an employee or an employee’s family members.”  

The provision doesn’t prohibit firing illegal immigrants, but it bars firing them for filing complaints that an employer isn’t following the act, attorney general spokesman Mike Faulk said in an email.  

“If someone is ineligible to work here, then they’re ineligible to work here. Nothing in the proposal impacts an employer’s obligations under federal law,” he said.

If passed, the law will be an “administrative landmine” for farms, Worker and Farmer Labor Association CEO Enrique Gastelum said. The Lacey-based organization provides human resource services to farms.  

“I know farms are going to feel caught in-between,” he said. “I’m very concerned that you have a state agency that is basically striking fear into employers.  

“It is really shocking to me how short-sighted and out of touch the Legislature is with some of the things they come up,” he said.  

The employer will have other obligations, such as posting notices in the five most commonly spoken non-English languages.  

Violating any part of the bill, including failing to post notices in a “conspicuous and accessible location,” will cost an employer $2,000 per employee.  

If the violation is “willful,” the penalty is $5,000 per worker. If it’s a repeat violation, the penalty is $10,000 per worker.  

To investigate, the attorney general can demand business records and oral testimony. If the attorney general decides not to take a farm to court, private organizations can.  

If private organizations win, the farm “shall” pay at least 80 times the minimum wage per worker. Next year, the penalty would be $1,370.40 per worker.  

Six Democrats sponsored the House bill, while 22 Democrats sponsored the Senate version. No Republican signed on as a sponsor.  

Labor groups and immigrant-rights organizations support the bill.  

“This bill can help immigrant workers, and all workers feel safer at work and help them to know what their employer is doing with their personal information,” Washington State Labor Council President April Sims said in a statement.  

The Legislature will convene Jan. 12 for a 60-day session.