Republicans in Alabama are currently working on a do-over of the Alabama HB 56 law. Unlike GA Republican Senators, some Alabama Senators are realizing that they made a mistake.
“There are things in the law we just didn’t see,” says Sen. Gerald Dial (R), of Lineville, who is part of a team of lawmakers working on a do-over of HB56. ”Every time I see a major news clip of dogs attacking protesters in Birmingham [from the civil rights era], even though we’re way beyond that, this bill drags us back into that hole. It’s opened up a window that we didn’t need. I’m a big enough guy to say I made a mistake and that I’ll do everything I can do to correct it.
Alabama is already facing consequences of economic impact.
The economic effects of the law have begun to pile up as many immigrants have left the state, fearing deportation – and have taken their purchasing power with them. Prof. Samuel Addy at the Center for Business and Economic Research at the University of Alabama recently predicted that HB 56 will reduce the Alabama economy by $40 million as income and spending by both illegal and legal Hispanic immigrants will decline.
But farmers, doctors, lawyers, contractors, etc., are all fuming against the law, and Senator Dials says that is the main reason for drastically tweaking the law. Dial hopes to eliminate the following requirements:
- A requirement that mandates proof of legal residence or citizenship for every transaction with the state and local government.
- Requirements that force, for example, pharmacists to check the residency status of specific suppliers, which promises to create an avalanche of new paperwork.
- Requiring that “officers of the court” report illegal immigrants, which means that lawyers may have to break confidentiality agreements with their clients.
- Dial says he wants to add a “good samaritan” clause so people who help illegal immigrants out of charity – such as at a soup kitchen – aren’t in danger of being arrested for a felony.
- He also wants to take out a provision where schools check the immigration status of new students, the fount of much of the criticism of the law.
“Everybody’s for a strong immigration law, and we’re not looking at anything that would foster illegals or provide extra benefits … but we need to correct unintended consequences causing a lot of undue heartaches and extra work for our citizens,” he says.
