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Washington, D.C. (November 15, 2023) – A new Center for Immigration Studies report raises serious concerns about the potential legal repercussions facing University of California (UC) officials who hire or authorize the hiring of illegal aliens. The report challenges the assurances provided to UC by 29 law professors last September, asserting that no federal law prohibits the hiring of illegal aliens by the university.
George Fishman, the Center’s senior legal fellow and author of the report, notes, “If the UC regents do authorize such employment and the federal government challenges it, the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986’s (IRCA’s) employer sanctions that prohibit the knowing hiring and employment of aliens not authorized to work under federal law will likely be found to apply to UC. Furthermore, UC will likely not be found to have a constitutional right to hire unauthorized aliens as professors.”
The report highlights that the professors failed to detail the potential risks involved, not only to HR officers but also to the UC regents themselves. Violations of employer sanctions carry not only civil but also potential criminal liability, with penalties including imprisonment.
Fishman notes that no administration has aggressively utilized employer sanctions’ criminal penalties. This is largely due to difficulties in proving the “knowing” hiring of unauthorized aliens. However, he argues that should UC publicly announce its willingness to hire illegal aliens, it may face a different risk profile.
While the Biden administration may refuse to enforce the law, the statute of limitations for the federal crimes involved is five years, allowing the possibility of prosecutions under a new policy in the future.
After receiving assurance from the 29 law professors, the UC regents announced plans to complete a proposed implementation plan by November 2023 but have not publicly announced it yet. An announcement may be forthcoming tomorrow.
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