One thing I noticed after moving back to Tampa Bay, after a brief stint in Arizona, was the lack of immigration debate in Florida. Immigration issues certainly don’t top the list of state problems like they do in the Southwest and Midwest. I’ve always found this surprising considering Florida has the third-largest immigrant population in the nation (and one of the highest redneck ratios, too).

But Florida’s laissez-faire attitude toward immigration may be changing.

In December, a Quinnipiac University poll reported two-thirds of Floridians want stronger immigration enforcement. And now, state legislators have filed 11 bills targeting immigrants this session, almost double the amount of last year.

One of the bills, sponsored by Republican Don Brown of DeFuniak Springs, models one of the harshest state laws in the country. Florida’s HB 73 is mirrored after an Oklahoma state law passed last year. The bill would require law enforcement officers to report a person’s immigration status, limit access to driver’s licenses for legal (and illegal) immigrants, require employers to verify the immigration status of newly hired employees, and levy extra penalties for transporting or harboring illegal immigrants. In January, USA Today reported that the Oklahoma law is “rattling” the state’s economy as illegal immigrants flee en masse.

Here’s a rundown of the other bills:

HB 159 and SB 388: The “Florida Security and Immigration Compliance Act” would prohibit contractors not registered with the federal work authorization program from receiving public contracts. The immigration status of any person charged with a crime or applying for state benefits would also be scrutinized.

HB 571 and HB 540: Would require “law enforcement officers, sheriffs, chief correctional officers, & circuit court clerks to report to Immigration and Customs Enforcement office of U.S. Department of Homeland Security suspected illegal aliens arrested, detained, or convicted of a felony.”

HB 577 and HB 1086: Would charge illegal immigrants with a misdemeanor or felony for residing in the U.S. unlawfully. The bill would also create a classification system of those charged — “undocumented alien” or “illegal alien,” depending on if they’ve been deported before.

HB 821: Also called the "Florida Safe Borders Act of 2008," this bill combines elements of HB 73 and HB 571 while adding a penalty for public employees who do not report a person’s immigration status.

SB 124: This bill “requires denial of agricultural land classification and assessment for a minimum period of 2-10 years for knowingly employing persons who are not authorized to work by federal immigration laws or the Attorney General of the United States. Provides an additional civil penalty of $25,000 for each employed unauthorized alien.” Say goodbye to Plant City, y’all.

HB 1247 and SB 2738: This law would require jail officials to determine the immigration status of every incoming inmate and report it to the federal government.

SB 1364: Creates a law prohibiting people from assisting illegal immigrants in gaining false documents.

How will Florida pay for such measures while we’re facing a record budget shortfall? The federal government, of course! Many of the bills above provide for charging the feds for having to carry out immigration duties.

My question is this: Are these bills necessary? And if so, which ones? But more importantly, would you be willing to destroy Florida’s agricultural and hospitality industries in order to create a more legal citizenry?

(Photo above courtesy of Nila Gurusinghe on Flickr)

This article appears in Feb 27 – Mar 4, 2008.