I 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 4340 

To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to eliminate the diversity 

immigrant program, to focus family-sponsored immigration on spouses 

and minor children, and make mandatory and permanent requirements 

relating to use of an electronic employment eligibility verification system. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

NOVEMBER 9, 2017 

Mr. BRAT (for himself and Mr. SMITH of Texas) introduced the following bill; 

which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition 

to the Committees on Ways and Means, and Education and the Workforce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each 

case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of 

the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to eliminate 

the diversity immigrant program, to focus family-sponsored immigration on spouses and minor children, and 

make mandatory and permanent requirements relating 

to use of an electronic employment eligibility verification 

system. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
2 

•HR 4340 IH

1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

2 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

3 ‘‘American Labor, Wages, and Sovereignty Act’’ or the 

4 ‘‘American LAWS Act’’. 

5 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents of 

6 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

TITLE I—MODIFICATION OF IMMIGRANT VISA PRIORITIES 

Sec. 101. Elimination of diversity immigrant program. 

Sec. 102. Family-sponsored immigration priorities. 

TITLE II—EMPLOYMENT ELIGIBILITY VERIFICATION 

Sec. 201. Short title. 

Sec. 202. Employment eligibility verification process. 

Sec. 203. Employment eligibility verification system. 

Sec. 204. Recruitment, referral, and continuation of employment. 

Sec. 205. Good faith defense. 

Sec. 206. Preemption and States’ rights. 

Sec. 207. Repeal. 

Sec. 208. Penalties. 

Sec. 209. Fraud and misuse of documents. 

Sec. 210. Protection of Social Security Administration programs. 

Sec. 211. Fraud prevention. 

Sec. 212. Use of Employment Eligibility Verification Photo Tool. 

Sec. 213. Identity authentication employment eligibility verification pilot programs. 

Sec. 214. Inspector General audits. 

7 TITLE I—MODIFICATION OF 

8 IMMIGRANT VISA PRIORITIES 

9 SEC. 101. ELIMINATION OF DIVERSITY IMMIGRANT PRO10 GRAM. 

11 (a) WORLDWIDE LEVEL OF DIVERSITY IMMI12 GRANTS.—Section 201 of the Immigration and Nation13 ality Act (8 U.S.C. 1151) is amended— 

14 (1) in subsection (a)— 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
3 

•HR 4340 IH

1 (A) by inserting ‘‘and’’ at the end of para2 graph (1); 

3 (B) by striking ‘‘; and’’ at the end of para4 graph (2) and inserting a period; and 

5 (C) by striking paragraph (3); and 

6 (2) by striking subsection (e). 

7 (b) ALLOCATION OF DIVERSITY IMMIGRANT VISAS.— 

8 Section 203 of such Act (8 U.S.C. 1153) is amended— 

9 (1) by striking subsection (c); 

10 (2) in subsection (d), by striking ‘‘(a), (b), or 

11 (c),’’ and inserting ‘‘(a) or (b),’’; 

12 (3) in subsection (e), by striking paragraph (2) 

13 and redesignating paragraph (3) as paragraph (2); 

14 (4) in subsection (f), by striking ‘‘(a), (b), or 

15 (c)’’ and inserting ‘‘(a) or (b)’’; and 

16 (5) in subsection (g), by striking ‘‘(a), (b), and 

17 (c)’’ and inserting ‘‘(a) and (b)’’. 

18 (c) PROCEDURE FOR GRANTING IMMIGRANT STA19 TUS.—Section 204 of such Act (8 U.S.C. 1154) is amend20 ed— 

21 (1) by striking subsection (a)(1)(I); and 

22 (2) in subsection (e), by striking ‘‘(a), (b), or 

23 (c)’’ and inserting ‘‘(a) or (b)’’. 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
4 

•HR 4340 IH

1 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

2 this section shall take effect as if enacted on October 1, 

3 2017. 

4 SEC. 102. FAMILY-SPONSORED IMMIGRATION PRIORITIES. 

5 (a) IMMEDIATE RELATIVE REDEFINED.—The Immi6 gration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq.) is 

7 amended— 

8 (1) in section 101(b)(1) (8 U.S.C. 1101(b)(1)), 

9 in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by strik10 ing ‘‘under twenty-one years of age who’’ and insert11 ing ‘‘who is younger than 18 years of age and’’; and 

12 (2) in section 201 (8 U.S.C. 1151)— 

13 (A) in subsection (b)(2)(A)— 

14 (i) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘children, 

15 spouses, and parents of a citizen of the 

16 United States, except that, in the case of 

17 parents, such citizens shall be at least 21 

18 years of age.’’ and inserting ‘‘children and 

19 spouse of a citizen of the United States.’’; 

20 and 

21 (ii) in clause (ii), by striking ‘‘such an 

22 immediate relative’’ and inserting ‘‘the im23 mediate relative spouse of a United States 

24 citizen’’; 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
5 

•HR 4340 IH

1 (B) by striking subsection (c) and insert2 ing the following: 

3 ‘‘(c) WORLDWIDE LEVEL OF FAMILY-SPONSORED

4 IMMIGRANTS.—(1) The worldwide level of family-spon5 sored immigrants under this subsection for a fiscal year 

6 is equal to 88,000 minus the number computed under 

7 paragraph (2). 

8 ‘‘(2) The number computed under this paragraph for 

9 a fiscal year is the number of aliens who were paroled into 

10 the United States under section 212(d)(5) in the second 

11 preceding fiscal year who— 

12 ‘‘(A) did not depart from the United States 

13 (without advance parole) within 365 days; and 

14 ‘‘(B)(i) did not acquire the status of an alien 

15 lawfully admitted to the United States for perma16 nent residence during the two preceding fiscal years; 

17 or 

18 ‘‘(ii) acquired such status during such period 

19 under a provision of law (other than subsection (b)) 

20 that exempts adjustment to such status from the nu21 merical limitation on the worldwide level of immigra22 tion under this section.’’; and 

23 (C) in subsection (f)— 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
6 

•HR 4340 IH

1 (i) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘sec2 tion 203(a)(2)(A)’’ and inserting ‘‘section 

3 203(a)’’; 

4 (ii) by striking paragraph (3); 

5 (iii) by redesignating paragraph (4) as 

6 paragraph (3); and 

7 (iv) in paragraph (3), as redesignated, 

8 by striking ‘‘(1) through (3)’’ and inserting 

9 ‘‘(1) and (2)’’. 

10 (b) FAMILY-BASED VISA PREFERENCES.—Section 

11 203(a) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 

12 1153(a)) is amended to read as follows: 

13 ‘‘(a) SPOUSES AND MINOR CHILDREN OF PERMA14 NENT RESIDENT ALIENS.—Family-sponsored immigrants 

15 described in this subsection are qualified immigrants who 

16 are the spouse or a child of an alien lawfully admitted 

17 for permanent residence.’’. 

18 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

19 (1) DEFINITION OF V NONIMMIGRANT.—Section 

20 101(a)(15)(V) of the Immigration and Nationality 

21 Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(15)(V)) is amended by strik22 ing ‘‘section 203(a)(2)(A)’’ each place such term ap23 pears and inserting ‘‘section 203(a)’’. 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
7 

•HR 4340 IH

1 (2) NUMERICAL LIMITATION TO ANY SINGLE

2 FOREIGN STATE.—Section 202 of such Act (8 

3 U.S.C. 1152) is amended— 

4 (A) in subsection (a)(4)— 

5 (i) by striking subparagraphs (A) and 

6 (B) and inserting the following: 

7 ‘‘(A) 75 PERCENT OF FAMILY-SPONSORED

8 IMMIGRANTS NOT SUBJECT TO PER COUNTRY

9 LIMITATION.—Of the visa numbers made avail10 able under section 203(a) in any fiscal year, 75 

11 percent shall be issued without regard to the 

12 numerical limitation under paragraph (2). 

13 ‘‘(B) TREATMENT OF REMAINING 25 PER14 CENT FOR COUNTRIES SUBJECT TO SUB15 SECTION (e).— 

16 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Of the visa num17 bers made available under section 203(a) 

18 in any fiscal year, 25 percent shall be 

19 available, in the case of a foreign state or 

20 dependent area that is subject to sub21 section (e) only to the extent that the total 

22 number of visas issued in accordance with 

23 subparagraph (A) to natives of the foreign 

24 state or dependent area is less than the 

25 subsection (e) ceiling. 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
8 

•HR 4340 IH

1 ‘‘(ii) SUBSECTION (e) CEILING DE2 FINED.—In clause (i), the term ‘subsection 

3 (e) ceiling’ means, for a foreign state or 

4 dependent area, 77 percent of the max5 imum number of visas that may be made 

6 available under section 203(a) to immi7 grants who are natives of the state or area, 

8 consistent with subsection (e).’’; and 

9 (ii) by striking subparagraphs (C) and 

10 (D); and 

11 (B) in subsection (e)— 

12 (i) in paragraph (1), by adding ‘‘and’’ 

13 at the end; 

14 (ii) by striking paragraph (2); 

15 (iii) by redesignating paragraph (3) as 

16 paragraph (2); and 

17 (iv) in the undesignated matter after 

18 paragraph (2), as redesignated, by striking 

19 ‘‘, respectively,’’ and all that follows and 

20 inserting a period. 

21 (3) RULES FOR DETERMINING WHETHER CER22 TAIN ALIENS ARE CHILDREN.—Section 203(h) of 

23 such Act (8 U.S.C. 1153(h)) is amended by striking 

24 ‘‘(a)(2)(A)’’ each place such term appears and in25 serting ‘‘(a)(2)’’. 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
9 

•HR 4340 IH

1 (4) PROCEDURE FOR GRANTING IMMIGRANT

2 STATUS.—Section 204 of such Act (8 U.S.C. 1154) 

3 is amended— 

4 (A) in subsection (a)(1)— 

5 (i) in subparagraph (A)(i), by striking 

6 ‘‘to classification by reason of a relation7 ship described in paragraph (1), (3), or (4) 

8 of section 203(a) or’’; 

9 (ii) in subparagraph (B)— 

10 (I) in clause (i), by redesignating 

11 the second subclause (I) as subclause 

12 (II); and 

13 (II) by striking ‘‘203(a)(2)(A)’’ 

14 each place such terms appear and in15 serting ‘‘203(a)’’; and 

16 (iii) in subparagraph (D)(i)(I), by 

17 striking ‘‘a petitioner’’ and all that follows 

18 through ‘‘section 204(a)(1)(B)(iii).’’ and 

19 inserting ‘‘an individual younger than 21 

20 years of age for purposes of adjudicating 

21 such petition and for purposes of admis22 sion as an immediate relative under section 

23 201(b)(2)(A)(i) or a family-sponsored im24 migrant under section 203(a), as approVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:19 Nov 15, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4340.IH H4340

lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
10 

•HR 4340 IH

1 priate, notwithstanding the actual age of 

2 the individual.’’; 

3 (B) in subsection (f)(1), by striking ‘‘, 

4 203(a)(1), or 203(a)(3), as appropriate’’; and 

5 (C) by striking subsection (k). 

6 (5) WAIVERS OF INADMISSIBILITY.—Section 

7 212 of such Act (8 U.S.C. 1182) is amended— 

8 (A) in subsection (a)(6)(E)(ii), by striking 

9 ‘‘section 203(a)(2)’’ and inserting ‘‘section 

10 203(a)’’; and 

11 (B) in subsection (d)(11), by striking 

12 ‘‘(other than paragraph (4) thereof)’’. 

13 (6) EMPLOYMENT OF V NONIMMIGRANTS.—Sec14 tion 214(q)(1)(B)(i) of such Act (8 U.S.C. 

15 1184(q)(1)(B)(i)) is amended by striking ‘‘section 

16 203(a)(2)(A)’’ each place such term appears and in17 serting ‘‘section 203(a)’’. 

18 (7) DEFINITION OF ALIEN SPOUSE.—Section 

19 216(h)(1)(C) of such Act (8 U.S.C. 1186a(h)(1)(C)) 

20 is amended by striking ‘‘section 203(a)(2)’’ and in21 serting ‘‘section 203(a)’’. 

22 (8) CLASSES OF DEPORTABLE ALIENS.—Sec23 tion 237(a)(1)(E)(ii) of such Act (8 U.S.C. 

24 1227(a)(1)(E)(ii)) is amended by striking ‘‘section 

25 203(a)(2)’’ and inserting ‘‘section 203(a)’’. 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
11 

•HR 4340 IH

1 (d) CREATION OF NONIMMIGRANT CLASSIFICATION

2 FOR ALIEN PARENTS OF ADULT UNITED STATES CITI3 ZENS.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 101(a)(15) of the 

5 Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 

6 1101(a)(15)) is amended— 

7 (A) in subparagraph (T)(ii)(III), by strik8 ing the period at the end and inserting a semi9 colon; 

10 (B) in subparagraph (U)(iii), by striking 

11 ‘‘or’’ at the end; 

12 (C) in subparagraph (V)(ii)(II), by striking 

13 the period at the end and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 

14 (D) by adding at the end the following: 

15 ‘‘(W) Subject to section 214(s), an alien who is 

16 a parent of a citizen of the United States, if the cit17 izen is at least 21 years of age.’’. 

18 (2) CONDITIONS ON ADMISSION.—Section 214 

19 of such Act (8 U.S.C. 1184) is amended by adding 

20 at the end the following: 

21 ‘‘(s)(1) The initial period of authorized admission for 

22 a nonimmigrant described in section 101(a)(15)(W) shall 

23 be 5 years, but may be extended by the Secretary of 

24 Homeland Security for additional 5-year periods if the 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
12 

•HR 4340 IH

1 United States citizen son or daughter of the nonimmigrant 

2 is still residing in the United States. 

3 ‘‘(2) A nonimmigrant described in section 

4 101(a)(15)(W)— 

5 ‘‘(A) is not authorized to be employed in the 

6 United States; and 

7 ‘‘(B) is not eligible for any Federal, State, or 

8 local public benefit. 

9 ‘‘(3) Regardless of the resources of a nonimmigrant 

10 described in section 101(a)(15)(W), the United States cit11 izen son or daughter who sponsored the nonimmigrant 

12 parent shall be responsible for the nonimmigrant’s support 

13 while the nonimmigrant resides in the United States. 

14 ‘‘(4) An alien is ineligible to receive a visa or to be 

15 admitted into the United States as a nonimmigrant de16 scribed in section 101(a)(15)(W) unless the alien provides 

17 satisfactory proof that the United States citizen son or 

18 daughter has arranged for health insurance coverage for 

19 the alien, at no cost to the alien, during the anticipated 

20 period of the alien’s residence in the United States.’’. 

21 (e) EFFECTIVE DATE; APPLICABILITY.— 

22 (1) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made 

23 by this section shall take effect on the first day of 

24 the first fiscal year beginning on or after the date 

25 of the enactment of this Act. 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
13 

•HR 4340 IH

1 (2) INVALIDITY OF CERTAIN PETITIONS AND

2 APPLICATIONS.—Excepted as provided in paragraph 

3 (3), any petition under section 204 of the Immigra4 tion and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1154) seeking 

5 classification of an alien under a family-sponsored 

6 immigrant category that was eliminated by the 

7 amendments made by this section and filed on or 

8 after the date of enactment of this Act and any ap9 plication for an immigrant visa based on such a peti10 tion shall be considered invalid. 

11 (3) VALID OFFER OF ADMISSION.—Notwith12 standing the termination by this title of the family13 sponsored and employment-based immigrant visa 

14 categories, any alien whose petition or application 

15 for a visa subsection (a) or (b) of section 203 of the 

16 Immigration and Nationality Act, as in effect on the 

17 day before the date of the enactment of this Act, 

18 was approved and who is scheduled to receive an im19 migrant visa in the applicable preference category 

20 not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment 

21 of this Act, shall be entitled to such visa if the alien 

22 enters the United States within 1 year after such 

23 date of enactment. 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
14 

•HR 4340 IH

1 TITLE II—EMPLOYMENT 

2 ELIGIBILITY VERIFICATION 

3 SEC. 201. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Legal Workforce Act’’. 

5 SEC. 202. EMPLOYMENT ELIGIBILITY VERIFICATION PROC6 ESS. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 274A(b) of the Immigra8 tion and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1324a(b)) is amended 

9 to read as follows: 

10 ‘‘(b) EMPLOYMENT ELIGIBILITY VERIFICATION

11 PROCESS.— 

12 ‘‘(1) NEW HIRES, RECRUITMENT, AND REFER13 RAL.—The requirements referred to in paragraphs 

14 (1)(B) and (3) of subsection (a) are, in the case of 

15 a person or other entity hiring, recruiting, or refer16 ring an individual for employment in the United 

17 States, the following: 

18 ‘‘(A) ATTESTATION AFTER EXAMINATION

19 OF DOCUMENTATION.— 

20 ‘‘(i) ATTESTATION.—During the 

21 verification period (as defined in subpara22 graph (E)), the person or entity shall at23 test, under penalty of perjury and on a 

24 form, including electronic and telephonic 

25 formats, designated or established by the 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
15 

•HR 4340 IH

1 Secretary by regulation not later than 6 

2 months after the date of the enactment of 

3 the Legal Workforce Act, that it has 

4 verified that the individual is not an unau5 thorized alien by— 

6 ‘‘(I) obtaining from the indi7 vidual the individual’s social security 

8 account number or United States 

9 passport number and recording the 

10 number on the form (if the individual 

11 claims to have been issued such a 

12 number), and, if the individual does 

13 not attest to United States nationality 

14 under subparagraph (B), obtaining 

15 such identification or authorization 

16 number established by the Depart17 ment of Homeland Security for the 

18 alien as the Secretary of Homeland 

19 Security may specify, and recording 

20 such number on the form; and 

21 ‘‘(II) examining— 

22 ‘‘(aa) a document relating to 

23 the individual presenting it de24 scribed in clause (ii); or 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
16 

•HR 4340 IH

1 ‘‘(bb) a document relating to 

2 the individual presenting it de3 scribed in clause (iii) and a docu4 ment relating to the individual 

5 presenting it described in clause 

6 (iv). 

7 ‘‘(ii) DOCUMENTS EVIDENCING EM8 PLOYMENT AUTHORIZATION AND ESTAB9 LISHING IDENTITY.—A document de10 scribed in this subparagraph is an individ11 ual’s— 

12 ‘‘(I) unexpired United States 

13 passport or passport card; 

14 ‘‘(II) unexpired permanent resi15 dent card that contains a photograph; 

16 ‘‘(III) unexpired employment au17 thorization card that contains a pho18 tograph; 

19 ‘‘(IV) in the case of a non20 immigrant alien authorized to work 

21 for a specific employer incident to sta22 tus, a foreign passport with Form I– 

23 94 or Form I–94A, or other docu24 mentation as designated by the Sec25 retary specifying the alien’s nonVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:19 Nov 15, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00016 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4340.IH H4340

lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
17 

•HR 4340 IH

1 immigrant status as long as the pe2 riod of status has not yet expired and 

3 the proposed employment is not in 

4 conflict with any restrictions or limita5 tions identified in the documentation; 

6 ‘‘(V) passport from the Fed7 erated States of Micronesia (FSM) or 

8 the Republic of the Marshall Islands 

9 (RMI) with Form I–94 or Form I– 

10 94A, or other documentation as des11 ignated by the Secretary, indicating 

12 nonimmigrant admission under the 

13 Compact of Free Association Between 

14 the United States and the FSM or 

15 RMI; or 

16 ‘‘(VI) other document designated 

17 by the Secretary of Homeland Secu18 rity, if the document— 

19 ‘‘(aa) contains a photograph 

20 of the individual and biometric 

21 identification data from the indi22 vidual and such other personal 

23 identifying information relating 

24 to the individual as the Secretary 

25 of Homeland Security finds, by 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
18 

•HR 4340 IH

1 regulation, sufficient for purposes 

2 of this clause; 

3 ‘‘(bb) is evidence of author4 ization of employment in the 

5 United States; and 

6 ‘‘(cc) contains security fea7 tures to make it resistant to tam8 pering, counterfeiting, and fraud9 ulent use. 

10 ‘‘(iii) DOCUMENTS EVIDENCING EM11 PLOYMENT AUTHORIZATION.—A document 

12 described in this subparagraph is an indi13 vidual’s social security account number 

14 card (other than such a card which speci15 fies on the face that the issuance of the 

16 card does not authorize employment in the 

17 United States). 

18 ‘‘(iv) DOCUMENTS ESTABLISHING

19 IDENTITY OF INDIVIDUAL.—A document 

20 described in this subparagraph is— 

21 ‘‘(I) an individual’s unexpired 

22 State issued driver’s license or identi23 fication card if it contains a photo24 graph and information such as name, 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
19 

•HR 4340 IH

1 date of birth, gender, height, eye 

2 color, and address; 

3 ‘‘(II) an individual’s unexpired 

4 U.S. military identification card; 

5 ‘‘(III) an individual’s unexpired 

6 Native American tribal identification 

7 document issued by a tribal entity rec8 ognized by the Bureau of Indian Af9 fairs; or 

10 ‘‘(IV) in the case of an individual 

11 under 18 years of age, a parent or 

12 legal guardian’s attestation under 

13 penalty of law as to the identity and 

14 age of the individual. 

15 ‘‘(v) AUTHORITY TO PROHIBIT USE OF

16 CERTAIN DOCUMENTS.—If the Secretary of 

17 Homeland Security finds, by regulation, 

18 that any document described in clause (i), 

19 (ii), or (iii) as establishing employment au20 thorization or identity does not reliably es21 tablish such authorization or identity or is 

22 being used fraudulently to an unacceptable 

23 degree, the Secretary may prohibit or place 

24 conditions on its use for purposes of this 

25 paragraph. 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
20 

•HR 4340 IH

1 ‘‘(vi) SIGNATURE.—Such attestation 

2 may be manifested by either a handwritten 

3 or electronic signature. 

4 ‘‘(B) INDIVIDUAL ATTESTATION OF EM5 PLOYMENT AUTHORIZATION.—During the 

6 verification period (as defined in subparagraph 

7 (E)), the individual shall attest, under penalty 

8 of perjury on the form designated or established 

9 for purposes of subparagraph (A), that the indi10 vidual is a citizen or national of the United 

11 States, an alien lawfully admitted for perma12 nent residence, or an alien who is authorized 

13 under this Act or by the Secretary of Homeland 

14 Security to be hired, recruited, or referred for 

15 such employment. Such attestation may be 

16 manifested by either a handwritten or electronic 

17 signature. The individual shall also provide that 

18 individual’s social security account number or 

19 United States passport number (if the indi20 vidual claims to have been issued such a num21 ber), and, if the individual does not attest to 

22 United States nationality under this subpara23 graph, such identification or authorization num24 ber established by the Department of Homeland 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
21 

•HR 4340 IH

1 Security for the alien as the Secretary may 

2 specify. 

3 ‘‘(C) RETENTION OF VERIFICATION FORM

4 AND VERIFICATION.— 

5 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—After completion 

6 of such form in accordance with subpara7 graphs (A) and (B), the person or entity 

8 shall— 

9 ‘‘(I) retain a paper, microfiche, 

10 microfilm, or electronic version of the 

11 form and make it available for inspec12 tion by officers of the Department of 

13 Homeland Security, the Department 

14 of Justice, or the Department of 

15 Labor during a period beginning on 

16 the date of the recruiting or referral 

17 of the individual, or, in the case of the 

18 hiring of an individual, the date on 

19 which the verification is completed, 

20 and ending— 

21 ‘‘(aa) in the case of the re22 cruiting or referral of an indi23 vidual, 3 years after the date of 

24 the recruiting or referral; and 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
22 

•HR 4340 IH

1 ‘‘(bb) in the case of the hir2 ing of an individual, the later of 

3 3 years after the date the 

4 verification is completed or one 

5 year after the date the individ6 ual’s employment is terminated; 

7 and 

8 ‘‘(II) during the verification pe9 riod (as defined in subparagraph (E)), 

10 make an inquiry, as provided in sub11 section (d), using the verification sys12 tem to seek verification of the identity 

13 and employment eligibility of an indi14 vidual. 

15 ‘‘(ii) CONFIRMATION.— 

16 ‘‘(I) CONFIRMATION RE17 CEIVED.—If the person or other entity 

18 receives an appropriate confirmation 

19 of an individual’s identity and work 

20 eligibility under the verification sys21 tem within the time period specified, 

22 the person or entity shall record on 

23 the form an appropriate code that is 

24 provided under the system and that 

25 indicates a final confirmation of such 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
23 

•HR 4340 IH

1 identity and work eligibility of the in2 dividual. 

3 ‘‘(II) TENTATIVE NONCONFIRMA4 TION RECEIVED.—If the person or 

5 other entity receives a tentative non6 confirmation of an individual’s iden7 tity or work eligibility under the 

8 verification system within the time pe9 riod specified, the person or entity 

10 shall so inform the individual for 

11 whom the verification is sought. If the 

12 individual does not contest the non13 confirmation within the time period 

14 specified, the nonconfirmation shall be 

15 considered final. The person or entity 

16 shall then record on the form an ap17 propriate code which has been pro18 vided under the system to indicate a 

19 final nonconfirmation. If the indi20 vidual does contest the nonconfirma21 tion, the individual shall utilize the 

22 process for secondary verification pro23 vided under subsection (d). The non24 confirmation will remain tentative 

25 until a final confirmation or nonconVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:19 Nov 15, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00023 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4340.IH H4340

lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
24 

•HR 4340 IH

1 firmation is provided by the 

2 verification system within the time pe3 riod specified. In no case shall an em4 ployer terminate employment of an in5 dividual because of a failure of the in6 dividual to have identity and work eli7 gibility confirmed under this section 

8 until a nonconfirmation becomes final. 

9 Nothing in this clause shall apply to a 

10 termination of employment for any 

11 reason other than because of such a 

12 failure. In no case shall an employer 

13 rescind the offer of employment to an 

14 individual because of a failure of the 

15 individual to have identity and work 

16 eligibility confirmed under this sub17 section until a nonconfirmation be18 comes final. Nothing in this subclause 

19 shall apply to a recission of the offer 

20 of employment for any reason other 

21 than because of such a failure. 

22 ‘‘(III) FINAL CONFIRMATION OR

23 NONCONFIRMATION RECEIVED.—If a 

24 final confirmation or nonconfirmation 

25 is provided by the verification system 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
25 

•HR 4340 IH

1 regarding an individual, the person or 

2 entity shall record on the form an ap3 propriate code that is provided under 

4 the system and that indicates a con5 firmation or nonconfirmation of iden6 tity and work eligibility of the indi7 vidual. 

8 ‘‘(IV) EXTENSION OF TIME.—If 

9 the person or other entity in good 

10 faith attempts to make an inquiry 

11 during the time period specified and 

12 the verification system has registered 

13 that not all inquiries were received 

14 during such time, the person or entity 

15 may make an inquiry in the first sub16 sequent working day in which the 

17 verification system registers that it 

18 has received all inquiries. If the 

19 verification system cannot receive in20 quiries at all times during a day, the 

21 person or entity merely has to assert 

22 that the entity attempted to make the 

23 inquiry on that day for the previous 

24 sentence to apply to such an inquiry, 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
26 

•HR 4340 IH

1 and does not have to provide any ad2 ditional proof concerning such inquiry. 

3 ‘‘(V) CONSEQUENCES OF NON4 CONFIRMATION.— 

5 ‘‘(aa) TERMINATION OR NO6 TIFICATION OF CONTINUED EM7 PLOYMENT.—If the person or 

8 other entity has received a final 

9 nonconfirmation regarding an in10 dividual, the person or entity 

11 may terminate employment of the 

12 individual (or decline to recruit 

13 or refer the individual). If the 

14 person or entity does not termi15 nate employment of the indi16 vidual or proceeds to recruit or 

17 refer the individual, the person or 

18 entity shall notify the Secretary 

19 of Homeland Security of such 

20 fact through the verification sys21 tem or in such other manner as 

22 the Secretary may specify. 

23 ‘‘(bb) FAILURE TO NO24 TIFY.—If the person or entity 

25 fails to provide notice with reVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:19 Nov 15, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00026 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4340.IH H4340

lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
27 

•HR 4340 IH

1 spect to an individual as required 

2 under item (aa), the failure is 

3 deemed to constitute a violation 

4 of subsection (a)(1)(A) with re5 spect to that individual. 

6 ‘‘(VI) CONTINUED EMPLOYMENT

7 AFTER FINAL NONCONFIRMATION.—If 

8 the person or other entity continues to 

9 employ (or to recruit or refer) an indi10 vidual after receiving final noncon11 firmation, a rebuttable presumption is 

12 created that the person or entity has 

13 violated subsection (a)(1)(A). 

14 ‘‘(D) EFFECTIVE DATES OF NEW PROCE15 DURES.— 

16 ‘‘(i) HIRING.—Except as provided in 

17 clause (iii), the provisions of this para18 graph shall apply to a person or other enti19 ty hiring an individual for employment in 

20 the United States as follows: 

21 ‘‘(I) With respect to employers 

22 having 10,000 or more employees in 

23 the United States on the date of the 

24 enactment of the Legal Workforce 

25 Act, on the date that is 6 months 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
28 

•HR 4340 IH

1 after the date of the enactment of 

2 such Act. 

3 ‘‘(II) With respect to employers 

4 having 500 or more employees in the 

5 United States, but less than 10,000 

6 employees in the United States, on 

7 the date of the enactment of the 

8 Legal Workforce Act, on the date that 

9 is 12 months after the date of the en10 actment of such Act. 

11 ‘‘(III) With respect to employers 

12 having 20 or more employees in the 

13 United States, but less than 500 em14 ployees in the United States, on the 

15 date of the enactment of the Legal 

16 Workforce Act, on the date that is 18 

17 months after the date of the enact18 ment of such Act. 

19 ‘‘(IV) With respect to employers 

20 having 1 or more employees in the 

21 United States, but less than 20 em22 ployees in the United States, on the 

23 date of the enactment of the Legal 

24 Workforce Act, on the date that is 24 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
29 

•HR 4340 IH

1 months after the date of the enact2 ment of such Act. 

3 ‘‘(ii) RECRUITING AND REFERRING.— 

4 Except as provided in clause (iii), the pro5 visions of this paragraph shall apply to a 

6 person or other entity recruiting or refer7 ring an individual for employment in the 

8 United States on the date that is 12 

9 months after the date of the enactment of 

10 the Legal Workforce Act. 

11 ‘‘(iii) AGRICULTURAL LABOR OR SERV12 ICES.—With respect to an employee per13 forming agricultural labor or services, this 

14 paragraph shall not apply with respect to 

15 the verification of the employee until the 

16 date that is 30 months after the date of 

17 the enactment of the Legal Workforce Act. 

18 For purposes of the preceding sentence, 

19 the term ‘agricultural labor or services’ has 

20 the meaning given such term by the Sec21 retary of Agriculture in regulations and in22 cludes agricultural labor as defined in sec23 tion 3121(g) of the Internal Revenue Code 

24 of 1986, agriculture as defined in section 

25 3(f) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
30 

•HR 4340 IH

1 1938 (29 U.S.C. 203(f)), the handling, 

2 planting, drying, packing, packaging, proc3 essing, freezing, or grading prior to deliv4 ery for storage of any agricultural or horti5 cultural commodity in its unmanufactured 

6 state, all activities required for the prepa7 ration, processing or manufacturing of a 

8 product of agriculture (as such term is de9 fined in such section 3(f)) for further dis10 tribution, and activities similar to all the 

11 foregoing as they relate to fish or shellfish 

12 facilities. An employee described in this 

13 clause shall not be counted for purposes of 

14 clause (i). 

15 ‘‘(iv) EXTENSIONS.—Upon request by 

16 an employer having 50 or fewer employees, 

17 the Secretary shall allow a one-time 6- 

18 month extension of the effective date set 

19 out in this subparagraph applicable to such 

20 employer. Such request shall be made to 

21 the Secretary and shall be made prior to 

22 such effective date. 

23 ‘‘(v) TRANSITION RULE.—Subject to 

24 paragraph (4), the following shall apply to 

25 a person or other entity hiring, recruiting, 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
31 

•HR 4340 IH

1 or referring an individual for employment 

2 in the United States until the effective 

3 date or dates applicable under clauses (i) 

4 through (iii): 

5 ‘‘(I) This subsection, as in effect 

6 before the enactment of the Legal 

7 Workforce Act. 

8 ‘‘(II) Subtitle A of title IV of the 

9 Illegal Immigration Reform and Im10 migrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (8 

11 U.S.C. 1324a note), as in effect be12 fore the effective date in section 

13 207(c) of the Legal Workforce Act. 

14 ‘‘(III) Any other provision of 

15 Federal law requiring the person or 

16 entity to participate in the E-Verify 

17 Program described in section 403(a) 

18 of the Illegal Immigration Reform and 

19 Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 

20 (8 U.S.C. 1324a note), as in effect be21 fore the effective date in section 

22 207(c) of the Legal Workforce Act, 

23 including Executive Order 13465 (8 

24 U.S.C. 1324a note; relating to Gov25 ernment procurement). 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
32 

•HR 4340 IH

1 ‘‘(E) VERIFICATION PERIOD DEFINED.— 

2 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of 

3 this paragraph: 

4 ‘‘(I) In the case of recruitment or 

5 referral, the term ‘verification period’ 

6 means the period ending on the date 

7 recruiting or referring commences. 

8 ‘‘(II) In the case of hiring, the 

9 term ‘verification period’ means the 

10 period beginning on the date on which 

11 an offer of employment is extended 

12 and ending on the date that is three 

13 business days after the date of hire, 

14 except as provided in clause (iii). The 

15 offer of employment may be condi16 tioned in accordance with clause (ii). 

17 ‘‘(ii) JOB OFFER MAY BE CONDI18 TIONAL.—A person or other entity may 

19 offer a prospective employee an employ20 ment position that is conditioned on final 

21 verification of the identity and employment 

22 eligibility of the employee using the proce23 dures established under this paragraph. 

24 ‘‘(iii) SPECIAL RULE.—Notwith25 standing clause (i)(II), in the case of an 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
33 

•HR 4340 IH

1 alien who is authorized for employment 

2 and who provides evidence from the Social 

3 Security Administration that the alien has 

4 applied for a social security account num5 ber, the verification period ends three busi6 ness days after the alien receives the social 

7 security account number. 

8 ‘‘(2) REVERIFICATION FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH

9 LIMITED WORK AUTHORIZATION.— 

10 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

11 subparagraph (B), a person or entity shall 

12 make an inquiry, as provided in subsection (d), 

13 using the verification system to seek 

14 reverification of the identity and employment 

15 eligibility of all individuals with a limited period 

16 of work authorization employed by the person 

17 or entity during the three business days after 

18 the date on which the employee’s work author19 ization expires as follows: 

20 ‘‘(i) With respect to employers having 

21 10,000 or more employees in the United 

22 States on the date of the enactment of the 

23 Legal Workforce Act, beginning on the 

24 date that is 6 months after the date of the 

25 enactment of such Act. 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
34 

•HR 4340 IH

1 ‘‘(ii) With respect to employers having 

2 500 or more employees in the United 

3 States, but less than 10,000 employees in 

4 the United States, on the date of the en5 actment of the Legal Workforce Act, be6 ginning on the date that is 12 months 

7 after the date of the enactment of such 

8 Act. 

9 ‘‘(iii) With respect to employers hav10 ing 20 or more employees in the United 

11 States, but less than 500 employees in the 

12 United States, on the date of the enact13 ment of the Legal Workforce Act, begin14 ning on the date that is 18 months after 

15 the date of the enactment of such Act. 

16 ‘‘(iv) With respect to employers hav17 ing 1 or more employees in the United 

18 States, but less than 20 employees in the 

19 United States, on the date of the enact20 ment of the Legal Workforce Act, begin21 ning on the date that is 24 months after 

22 the date of the enactment of such Act. 

23 ‘‘(B) AGRICULTURAL LABOR OR SERV24 ICES.—With respect to an employee performing 

25 agricultural labor or services, or an employee 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
35 

•HR 4340 IH

1 recruited or referred by a farm labor contractor 

2 (as defined in section 3 of the Migrant and Sea3 sonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act (29 

4 U.S.C. 1801)), subparagraph (A) shall not 

5 apply with respect to the reverification of the 

6 employee until the date that is 30 months after 

7 the date of the enactment of the Legal Work8 force Act. For purposes of the preceding sen9 tence, the term ‘agricultural labor or services’ 

10 has the meaning given such term by the Sec11 retary of Agriculture in regulations and in12 cludes agricultural labor as defined in section 

13 3121(g) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, 

14 agriculture as defined in section 3(f) of the 

15 Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 

16 203(f)), the handling, planting, drying, packing, 

17 packaging, processing, freezing, or grading 

18 prior to delivery for storage of any agricultural 

19 or horticultural commodity in its unmanufac20 tured state, all activities required for the prepa21 ration, processing, or manufacturing of a prod22 uct of agriculture (as such term is defined in 

23 such section 3(f)) for further distribution, and 

24 activities similar to all the foregoing as they re25 late to fish or shellfish facilities. An employee 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
36 

•HR 4340 IH

1 described in this subparagraph shall not be 

2 counted for purposes of subparagraph (A). 

3 ‘‘(C) REVERIFICATION.—Paragraph 

4 (1)(C)(ii) shall apply to reverifications pursuant 

5 to this paragraph on the same basis as it ap6 plies to verifications pursuant to paragraph (1), 

7 except that employers shall— 

8 ‘‘(i) use a form designated or estab9 lished by the Secretary by regulation for 

10 purposes of this paragraph; and 

11 ‘‘(ii) retain a paper, microfiche, micro12 film, or electronic version of the form and 

13 make it available for inspection by officers 

14 of the Department of Homeland Security, 

15 the Department of Justice, or the Depart16 ment of Labor during the period beginning 

17 on the date the reverification commences 

18 and ending on the date that is the later of 

19 3 years after the date of such reverification 

20 or 1 year after the date the individual’s 

21 employment is terminated. 

22 ‘‘(3) PREVIOUSLY HIRED INDIVIDUALS.— 

23 ‘‘(A) ON A MANDATORY BASIS FOR CER24 TAIN EMPLOYEES.— 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
37 

•HR 4340 IH

1 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Not later than the 

2 date that is 6 months after the date of the 

3 enactment of the Legal Workforce Act, an 

4 employer shall make an inquiry, as pro5 vided in subsection (d), using the 

6 verification system to seek verification of 

7 the identity and employment eligibility of 

8 any individual described in clause (ii) em9 ployed by the employer whose employment 

10 eligibility has not been verified under the 

11 E-Verify Program described in section 

12 403(a) of the Illegal Immigration Reform 

13 and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 

14 (8 U.S.C. 1324a note). 

15 ‘‘(ii) INDIVIDUALS DESCRIBED.—An 

16 individual described in this clause is any of 

17 the following: 

18 ‘‘(I) An employee of any unit of 

19 a Federal, State, or local government. 

20 ‘‘(II) An employee who requires a 

21 Federal security clearance working in 

22 a Federal, State or local government 

23 building, a military base, a nuclear 

24 energy site, a weapons site, or an air25 port or other facility that requires 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
38 

•HR 4340 IH

1 workers to carry a Transportation 

2 Worker Identification Credential 

3 (TWIC). 

4 ‘‘(III) An employee assigned to 

5 perform work in the United States 

6 under a Federal contract, except that 

7 this subclause— 

8 ‘‘(aa) is not applicable to in9 dividuals who have a clearance 

10 under Homeland Security Presi11 dential Directive 12 (HSPD 12 

12 clearance), are administrative or 

13 overhead personnel, or are work14 ing solely on contracts that pro15 vide Commercial Off The Shelf 

16 goods or services as set forth by 

17 the Federal Acquisition Regu18 latory Council, unless they are 

19 subject to verification under sub20 clause (II); and 

21 ‘‘(bb) only applies to con22 tracts over the simple acquisition 

23 threshold as defined in section 

24 2.101 of title 48, Code of Federal 

25 Regulations. 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
39 

•HR 4340 IH

1 ‘‘(B) ON A MANDATORY BASIS FOR MUL2 TIPLE USERS OF SAME SOCIAL SECURITY AC3 COUNT NUMBER.—In the case of an employer 

4 who is required by this subsection to use the 

5 verification system described in subsection (d), 

6 or has elected voluntarily to use such system, 

7 the employer shall make inquiries to the system 

8 in accordance with the following: 

9 ‘‘(i) The Commissioner of Social Secu10 rity shall notify annually employees (at the 

11 employee address listed on the Wage and 

12 Tax Statement) who submit a social secu13 rity account number to which more than 

14 one employer reports income and for which 

15 there is a pattern of unusual multiple use. 

16 The notification letter shall identify the 

17 number of employers to which income is 

18 being reported as well as sufficient infor19 mation notifying the employee of the proc20 ess to contact the Social Security Adminis21 tration Fraud Hotline if the employee be22 lieves the employee’s identity may have 

23 been stolen. The notice shall not share in24 formation protected as private, in order to 

25 avoid any recipient of the notice from 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
40 

•HR 4340 IH

1 being in the position to further commit or 

2 begin committing identity theft. 

3 ‘‘(ii) If the person to whom the social 

4 security account number was issued by the 

5 Social Security Administration has been 

6 identified and confirmed by the Commis7 sioner, and indicates that the social secu8 rity account number was used without 

9 their knowledge, the Secretary and the 

10 Commissioner shall lock the social security 

11 account number for employment eligibility 

12 verification purposes and shall notify the 

13 employers of the individuals who wrong14 fully submitted the social security account 

15 number that the employee may not be 

16 work eligible. 

17 ‘‘(iii) Each employer receiving such 

18 notification of an incorrect social security 

19 account number under clause (ii) shall use 

20 the verification system described in sub21 section (d) to check the work eligibility sta22 tus of the applicable employee within 10 

23 business days of receipt of the notification. 

24 ‘‘(C) ON A VOLUNTARY BASIS.—Subject to 

25 paragraph (2), and subparagraphs (A) through 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
41 

•HR 4340 IH

1 (C) of this paragraph, beginning on the date 

2 that is 30 days after the date of the enactment 

3 of the Legal Workforce Act, an employer may 

4 make an inquiry, as provided in subsection (d), 

5 using the verification system to seek verification 

6 of the identity and employment eligibility of any 

7 individual employed by the employer. If an em8 ployer chooses voluntarily to seek verification of 

9 any individual employed by the employer, the 

10 employer shall seek verification of all individ11 uals employed at the same geographic location 

12 or, at the option of the employer, all individuals 

13 employed within the same job category, as the 

14 employee with respect to whom the employer 

15 seeks voluntarily to use the verification system. 

16 An employer’s decision about whether or not 

17 voluntarily to seek verification of its current 

18 workforce under this subparagraph may not be 

19 considered by any government agency in any 

20 proceeding, investigation, or review provided for 

21 in this Act. 

22 ‘‘(D) VERIFICATION.—Paragraph 

23 (1)(C)(ii) shall apply to verifications pursuant 

24 to this paragraph on the same basis as it apVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:19 Nov 15, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00041 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4340.IH H4340

lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
42 

•HR 4340 IH

1 plies to verifications pursuant to paragraph (1), 

2 except that employers shall— 

3 ‘‘(i) use a form designated or estab4 lished by the Secretary by regulation for 

5 purposes of this paragraph; and 

6 ‘‘(ii) retain a paper, microfiche, micro7 film, or electronic version of the form and 

8 make it available for inspection by officers 

9 of the Department of Homeland Security, 

10 the Department of Justice, or the Depart11 ment of Labor during the period beginning 

12 on the date the verification commences and 

13 ending on the date that is the later of 3 

14 years after the date of such verification or 

15 1 year after the date the individual’s em16 ployment is terminated. 

17 ‘‘(4) EARLY COMPLIANCE.— 

18 ‘‘(A) FORMER E-VERIFY REQUIRED USERS, 

19 INCLUDING FEDERAL CONTRACTORS.—Notwith20 standing the deadlines in paragraphs (1) and 

21 (2), beginning on the date of the enactment of 

22 the Legal Workforce Act, the Secretary is au23 thorized to commence requiring employers re24 quired to participate in the E-Verify Program 

25 described in section 403(a) of the Illegal ImmiVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:19 Nov 15, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00042 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4340.IH H4340

lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
43 

•HR 4340 IH

1 gration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility 

2 Act of 1996 (8 U.S.C. 1324a note), including 

3 employers required to participate in such pro4 gram by reason of Federal acquisition laws 

5 (and regulations promulgated under those laws, 

6 including the Federal Acquisition Regulation), 

7 to commence compliance with the requirements 

8 of this subsection (and any additional require9 ments of such Federal acquisition laws and reg10 ulation) in lieu of any requirement to partici11 pate in the E-Verify Program. 

12 ‘‘(B) FORMER E-VERIFY VOLUNTARY

13 USERS AND OTHERS DESIRING EARLY COMPLI14 ANCE.—Notwithstanding the deadlines in para15 graphs (1) and (2), beginning on the date of 

16 the enactment of the Legal Workforce Act, the 

17 Secretary shall provide for the voluntary com18 pliance with the requirements of this subsection 

19 by employers voluntarily electing to participate 

20 in the E-Verify Program described in section 

21 403(a) of the Illegal Immigration Reform and 

22 Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (8 U.S.C. 

23 1324a note) before such date, as well as by 

24 other employers seeking voluntary early compli25 ance. 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
44 

•HR 4340 IH

1 ‘‘(5) COPYING OF DOCUMENTATION PER2 MITTED.—Notwithstanding any other provision of 

3 law, the person or entity may copy a document pre4 sented by an individual pursuant to this subsection 

5 and may retain the copy, but only (except as other6 wise permitted under law) for the purpose of com7 plying with the requirements of this subsection. 

8 ‘‘(6) LIMITATION ON USE OF FORMS.—A form 

9 designated or established by the Secretary of Home10 land Security under this subsection and any infor11 mation contained in or appended to such form, may 

12 not be used for purposes other than for enforcement 

13 of this Act and any other provision of Federal crimi14 nal law. 

15 ‘‘(7) GOOD FAITH COMPLIANCE.— 

16 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise 

17 provided in this subsection, a person or entity 

18 is considered to have complied with a require19 ment of this subsection notwithstanding a tech20 nical or procedural failure to meet such require21 ment if there was a good faith attempt to com22 ply with the requirement. 

23 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTION IF FAILURE TO CORRECT

24 AFTER NOTICE.—Subparagraph (A) shall not 

25 apply if— 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
45 

•HR 4340 IH

1 ‘‘(i) the failure is not de minimus; 

2 ‘‘(ii) the Secretary of Homeland Secu3 rity has explained to the person or entity 

4 the basis for the failure and why it is not 

5 de minimus; 

6 ‘‘(iii) the person or entity has been 

7 provided a period of not less than 30 cal8 endar days (beginning after the date of the 

9 explanation) within which to correct the 

10 failure; and 

11 ‘‘(iv) the person or entity has not cor12 rected the failure voluntarily within such 

13 period. 

14 ‘‘(C) EXCEPTION FOR PATTERN OR PRAC15 TICE VIOLATORS.—Subparagraph (A) shall not 

16 apply to a person or entity that has or is engag17 ing in a pattern or practice of violations of sub18 section (a)(1)(A) or (a)(2). 

19 ‘‘(8) SINGLE EXTENSION OF DEADLINES UPON

20 CERTIFICATION.—In a case in which the Secretary 

21 of Homeland Security has certified to the Congress 

22 that the employment eligibility verification system 

23 required under subsection (d) will not be fully oper24 ational by the date that is 6 months after the date 

25 of the enactment of the Legal Workforce Act, each 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
46 

•HR 4340 IH

1 deadline established under this section for an em2 ployer to make an inquiry using such system shall 

3 be extended by 6 months. No other extension of such 

4 a deadline shall be made except as authorized under 

5 paragraph (1)(D)(iv).’’. 

6 (b) DATE OF HIRE.—Section 274A(h) of the Immi7 gration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1324a(h)) is 

8 amended by adding at the end the following: 

9 ‘‘(4) DEFINITION OF DATE OF HIRE.—As used 

10 in this section, the term ‘date of hire’ means the 

11 date of actual commencement of employment for 

12 wages or other remuneration, unless otherwise speci13 fied.’’. 

14 SEC. 203. EMPLOYMENT ELIGIBILITY VERIFICATION SYS15 TEM. 

16 Section 274A(d) of the Immigration and Nationality 

17 Act (8 U.S.C. 1324a(d)) is amended to read as follows: 

18 ‘‘(d) EMPLOYMENT ELIGIBILITY VERIFICATION SYS19 TEM.— 

20 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Patterned on the employ21 ment eligibility confirmation system established 

22 under section 404 of the Illegal Immigration Reform 

23 and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (8 U.S.C. 

24 1324a note), the Secretary of Homeland Security 

25 shall establish and administer a verification system 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
47 

•HR 4340 IH

1 through which the Secretary (or a designee of the 

2 Secretary, which may be a nongovernmental enti3 ty)— 

4 ‘‘(A) responds to inquiries made by per5 sons at any time through a toll-free telephone 

6 line and other toll-free electronic media con7 cerning an individual’s identity and whether the 

8 individual is authorized to be employed; and 

9 ‘‘(B) maintains records of the inquiries 

10 that were made, of verifications provided (or 

11 not provided), and of the codes provided to in12 quirers as evidence of their compliance with 

13 their obligations under this section. 

14 ‘‘(2) INITIAL RESPONSE.—The verification sys15 tem shall provide confirmation or a tentative non16 confirmation of an individual’s identity and employ17 ment eligibility within 3 working days of the initial 

18 inquiry. If providing confirmation or tentative non19 confirmation, the verification system shall provide an 

20 appropriate code indicating such confirmation or 

21 such nonconfirmation. 

22 ‘‘(3) SECONDARY CONFIRMATION PROCESS IN

23 CASE OF TENTATIVE NONCONFIRMATION.—In cases 

24 of tentative nonconfirmation, the Secretary shall 

25 specify, in consultation with the Commissioner of 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
48 

•HR 4340 IH

1 Social Security, an available secondary verification 

2 process to confirm the validity of information pro3 vided and to provide a final confirmation or noncon4 firmation not later than 10 working days after the 

5 date on which the notice of the tentative noncon6 firmation is received by the employee. The Secretary, 

7 in consultation with the Commissioner, may extend 

8 this deadline once on a case-by-case basis for a pe9 riod of 10 working days, and if the time is extended, 

10 shall document such extension within the verification 

11 system. The Secretary, in consultation with the 

12 Commissioner, shall notify the employee and em13 ployer of such extension. The Secretary, in consulta14 tion with the Commissioner, shall create a standard 

15 process of such extension and notification and shall 

16 make a description of such process available to the 

17 public. When final confirmation or nonconfirmation 

18 is provided, the verification system shall provide an 

19 appropriate code indicating such confirmation or 

20 nonconfirmation. 

21 ‘‘(4) DESIGN AND OPERATION OF SYSTEM.— 

22 The verification system shall be designed and oper23 ated— 

24 ‘‘(A) to maximize its reliability and ease of 

25 use by persons and other entities consistent 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
49 

•HR 4340 IH

1 with insulating and protecting the privacy and 

2 security of the underlying information; 

3 ‘‘(B) to respond to all inquiries made by 

4 such persons and entities on whether individ5 uals are authorized to be employed and to reg6 ister all times when such inquiries are not re7 ceived; 

8 ‘‘(C) with appropriate administrative, tech9 nical, and physical safeguards to prevent unau10 thorized disclosure of personal information; 

11 ‘‘(D) to have reasonable safeguards against 

12 the system’s resulting in unlawful discrimina13 tory practices based on national origin or citi14 zenship status, including— 

15 ‘‘(i) the selective or unauthorized use 

16 of the system to verify eligibility; or 

17 ‘‘(ii) the exclusion of certain individ18 uals from consideration for employment as 

19 a result of a perceived likelihood that addi20 tional verification will be required, beyond 

21 what is required for most job applicants; 

22 ‘‘(E) to maximize the prevention of iden23 tity theft use in the system; and 

24 ‘‘(F) to limit the subjects of verification to 

25 the following individuals: 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
50 

•HR 4340 IH

1 ‘‘(i) Individuals hired, referred, or re2 cruited, in accordance with paragraph (1) 

3 or (4) of subsection (b). 

4 ‘‘(ii) Employees and prospective em5 ployees, in accordance with paragraph (1), 

6 (2), (3), or (4) of subsection (b). 

7 ‘‘(iii) Individuals seeking to confirm 

8 their own employment eligibility on a vol9 untary basis. 

10 ‘‘(5) RESPONSIBILITIES OF COMMISSIONER OF

11 SOCIAL SECURITY.—As part of the verification sys12 tem, the Commissioner of Social Security, in con13 sultation with the Secretary of Homeland Security 

14 (and any designee of the Secretary selected to estab15 lish and administer the verification system), shall es16 tablish a reliable, secure method, which, within the 

17 time periods specified under paragraphs (2) and (3), 

18 compares the name and social security account num19 ber provided in an inquiry against such information 

20 maintained by the Commissioner in order to validate 

21 (or not validate) the information provided regarding 

22 an individual whose identity and employment eligi23 bility must be confirmed, the correspondence of the 

24 name and number, and whether the individual has 

25 presented a social security account number that is 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
51 

•HR 4340 IH

1 not valid for employment. The Commissioner shall 

2 not disclose or release social security information 

3 (other than such confirmation or nonconfirmation) 

4 under the verification system except as provided for 

5 in this section or section 205(c)(2)(I) of the Social 

6 Security Act. 

7 ‘‘(6) RESPONSIBILITIES OF SECRETARY OF

8 HOMELAND SECURITY.—As part of the verification 

9 system, the Secretary of Homeland Security (in con10 sultation with any designee of the Secretary selected 

11 to establish and administer the verification system), 

12 shall establish a reliable, secure method, which, with13 in the time periods specified under paragraphs (2) 

14 and (3), compares the name and alien identification 

15 or authorization number (or any other information 

16 as determined relevant by the Secretary) which are 

17 provided in an inquiry against such information 

18 maintained or accessed by the Secretary in order to 

19 validate (or not validate) the information provided, 

20 the correspondence of the name and number, wheth21 er the alien is authorized to be employed in the 

22 United States, or to the extent that the Secretary 

23 determines to be feasible and appropriate, whether 

24 the records available to the Secretary verify the 

25 identity or status of a national of the United States. 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
52 

•HR 4340 IH

1 ‘‘(7) UPDATING INFORMATION.—The Commis2 sioner of Social Security and the Secretary of Home3 land Security shall update their information in a 

4 manner that promotes the maximum accuracy and 

5 shall provide a process for the prompt correction of 

6 erroneous information, including instances in which 

7 it is brought to their attention in the secondary 

8 verification process described in paragraph (3). 

9 ‘‘(8) LIMITATION ON USE OF THE

10 VERIFICATION SYSTEM AND ANY RELATED SYS11 TEMS.— 

12 ‘‘(A) NO NATIONAL IDENTIFICATION

13 CARD.—Nothing in this section shall be con14 strued to authorize, directly or indirectly, the 

15 issuance or use of national identification cards 

16 or the establishment of a national identification 

17 card. 

18 ‘‘(B) CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE.—The 

19 Secretary may authorize or direct any person or 

20 entity responsible for granting access to, pro21 tecting, securing, operating, administering, or 

22 regulating part of the critical infrastructure (as 

23 defined in section 1016(e) of the Critical Infra24 structure Protection Act of 2001 (42 U.S.C. 

25 5195c(e))) to use the verification system to the 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
53 

•HR 4340 IH

1 extent the Secretary determines that such use 

2 will assist in the protection of the critical infra3 structure. 

4 ‘‘(9) REMEDIES.—If an individual alleges that 

5 the individual would not have been dismissed from 

6 a job but for an error of the verification mechanism, 

7 the individual may seek compensation only through 

8 the mechanism of the Federal Tort Claims Act, and 

9 injunctive relief to correct such error. No class ac10 tion may be brought under this paragraph.’’. 

11 SEC. 204. RECRUITMENT, REFERRAL, AND CONTINUATION 

12 OF EMPLOYMENT. 

13 (a) ADDITIONAL CHANGES TO RULES FOR RECRUIT14 MENT, REFERRAL, AND CONTINUATION OF EMPLOY15 MENT.—Section 274A(a) of the Immigration and Nation16 ality Act (8 U.S.C. 1324a(a)) is amended— 

17 (1) in paragraph (1)(A), by striking ‘‘for a fee’’; 

18 (2) in paragraph (1), by amending subpara19 graph (B) to read as follows: 

20 ‘‘(B) to hire, continue to employ, or to re21 cruit or refer for employment in the United 

22 States an individual without complying with the 

23 requirements of subsection (b).’’; and 

24 (3) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘after hiring 

25 an alien for employment in accordance with paraVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:19 Nov 15, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00053 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4340.IH H4340

lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
54 

•HR 4340 IH

1 graph (1),’’ and inserting ‘‘after complying with 

2 paragraph (1),’’. 

3 (b) DEFINITION.—Section 274A(h) of the Immigra4 tion and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1324a(h)), as amended 

5 by section 202(b) of this title, is further amended by add6 ing at the end the following: 

7 ‘‘(5) DEFINITION OF RECRUIT OR REFER.—As 

8 used in this section, the term ‘refer’ means the act 

9 of sending or directing a person who is in the United 

10 States or transmitting documentation or information 

11 to another, directly or indirectly, with the intent of 

12 obtaining employment in the United States for such 

13 person. Only persons or entities referring for remu14 neration (whether on a retainer or contingency 

15 basis) are included in the definition, except that 

16 union hiring halls that refer union members or non17 union individuals who pay union membership dues 

18 are included in the definition whether or not they re19 ceive remuneration, as are labor service entities or 

20 labor service agencies, whether public, private, for21 profit, or nonprofit, that refer, dispatch, or other22 wise facilitate the hiring of laborers for any period 

23 of time by a third party. As used in this section, the 

24 term ‘recruit’ means the act of soliciting a person 

25 who is in the United States, directly or indirectly, 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
55 

•HR 4340 IH

1 and referring the person to another with the intent 

2 of obtaining employment for that person. Only per3 sons or entities referring for remuneration (whether 

4 on a retainer or contingency basis) are included in 

5 the definition, except that union hiring halls that 

6 refer union members or nonunion individuals who 

7 pay union membership dues are included in this defi8 nition whether or not they receive remuneration, as 

9 are labor service entities or labor service agencies, 

10 whether public, private, for-profit, or nonprofit that 

11 recruit, dispatch, or otherwise facilitate the hiring of 

12 laborers for any period of time by a third party.’’. 

13 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

14 this section shall take effect on the date that is 1 year 

15 after the date of the enactment of this Act, except that 

16 the amendments made by subsection (a) shall take effect 

17 6 months after the date of the enactment of this Act inso18 far as such amendments relate to continuation of employ19 ment. 

20 SEC. 205. GOOD FAITH DEFENSE. 

21 Section 274A(a)(3) of the Immigration and Nation22 ality Act (8 U.S.C. 1324a(a)(3)) is amended to read as 

23 follows: 

24 ‘‘(3) GOOD FAITH DEFENSE.— 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
56 

•HR 4340 IH

1 ‘‘(A) DEFENSE.—An employer (or person 

2 or entity that hires, employs, recruits, or refers 

3 (as defined in subsection (h)(5)), or is otherwise 

4 obligated to comply with this section) who es5 tablishes that it has complied in good faith with 

6 the requirements of subsection (b)— 

7 ‘‘(i) shall not be liable to a job appli8 cant, an employee, the Federal Govern9 ment, or a State or local government, 

10 under Federal, State, or local criminal or 

11 civil law for any employment-related action 

12 taken with respect to a job applicant or 

13 employee in good-faith reliance on informa14 tion provided through the system estab15 lished under subsection (d); and 

16 ‘‘(ii) has established compliance with 

17 its obligations under subparagraphs (A) 

18 and (B) of paragraph (1) and subsection 

19 (b) absent a showing by the Secretary of 

20 Homeland Security, by clear and con21 vincing evidence, that the employer had 

22 knowledge that an employee is an unau23 thorized alien. 

24 ‘‘(B) MITIGATION ELEMENT.—For pur25 poses of subparagraph (A)(i), if an employer 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
57 

•HR 4340 IH

1 proves by a preponderance of the evidence that 

2 the employer uses a reasonable, secure, and es3 tablished technology to authenticate the identity 

4 of the new employee, that fact shall be taken 

5 into account for purposes of determining good 

6 faith use of the system established under sub7 section (d). 

8 ‘‘(C) FAILURE TO SEEK AND OBTAIN

9 VERIFICATION.—Subject to the effective dates 

10 and other deadlines applicable under subsection 

11 (b), in the case of a person or entity in the 

12 United States that hires, or continues to em13 ploy, an individual, or recruits or refers an indi14 vidual for employment, the following require15 ments apply: 

16 ‘‘(i) FAILURE TO SEEK

17 VERIFICATION.— 

18 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—If the person 

19 or entity has not made an inquiry, 

20 under the mechanism established 

21 under subsection (d) and in accord22 ance with the timeframes established 

23 under subsection (b), seeking 

24 verification of the identity and work 

25 eligibility of the individual, the deVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:19 Nov 15, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00057 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4340.IH H4340

lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
58 

•HR 4340 IH

1 fense under subparagraph (A) shall 

2 not be considered to apply with re3 spect to any employment, except as 

4 provided in subclause (II). 

5 ‘‘(II) SPECIAL RULE FOR FAIL6 URE OF VERIFICATION MECHANISM.— 

7 If such a person or entity in good 

8 faith attempts to make an inquiry in 

9 order to qualify for the defense under 

10 subparagraph (A) and the verification 

11 mechanism has registered that not all 

12 inquiries were responded to during the 

13 relevant time, the person or entity can 

14 make an inquiry until the end of the 

15 first subsequent working day in which 

16 the verification mechanism registers 

17 no nonresponses and qualify for such 

18 defense. 

19 ‘‘(ii) FAILURE TO OBTAIN

20 VERIFICATION.—If the person or entity 

21 has made the inquiry described in clause 

22 (i)(I) but has not received an appropriate 

23 verification of such identity and work eligi24 bility under such mechanism within the 

25 time period specified under subsection 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
59 

•HR 4340 IH

1 (d)(2) after the time the verification in2 quiry was received, the defense under sub3 paragraph (A) shall not be considered to 

4 apply with respect to any employment after 

5 the end of such time period.’’. 

6 SEC. 206. PREEMPTION AND STATES’ RIGHTS. 

7 Section 274A(h)(2) of the Immigration and Nation8 ality Act (8 U.S.C. 1324a(h)(2)) is amended to read as 

9 follows: 

10 ‘‘(2) PREEMPTION.— 

11 ‘‘(A) SINGLE, NATIONAL POLICY.—The 

12 provisions of this section preempt any State or 

13 local law, ordinance, policy, or rule, including 

14 any criminal or civil fine or penalty structure, 

15 insofar as they may now or hereafter relate to 

16 the hiring, continued employment, or status 

17 verification for employment eligibility purposes, 

18 of unauthorized aliens. 

19 ‘‘(B) STATE ENFORCEMENT OF FEDERAL

20 LAW.— 

21 ‘‘(i) BUSINESS LICENSING.—A State, 

22 locality, municipality, or political subdivi23 sion may exercise its authority over busi24 ness licensing and similar laws as a pen25 alty for failure to use the verification sysVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:19 Nov 15, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00059 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4340.IH H4340

lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
60 

•HR 4340 IH

1 tem described in subsection (d) to verify 

2 employment eligibility when and as re3 quired under subsection (b). 

4 ‘‘(ii) GENERAL RULES.—A State, at 

5 its own cost, may enforce the provisions of 

6 this section, but only insofar as such State 

7 follows the Federal regulations imple8 menting this section, applies the Federal 

9 penalty structure set out in this section, 

10 and complies with all Federal rules and 

11 guidance concerning implementation of this 

12 section. Such State may collect any fines 

13 assessed under this section. An employer 

14 may not be subject to enforcement, includ15 ing audit and investigation, by both a Fed16 eral agency and a State for the same viola17 tion under this section. Whichever entity, 

18 the Federal agency or the State, is first to 

19 initiate the enforcement action, has the 

20 right of first refusal to proceed with the 

21 enforcement action. The Secretary must 

22 provide copies of all guidance, training, 

23 and field instructions provided to Federal 

24 officials implementing the provisions of 

25 this section to each State.’’. 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
61 

•HR 4340 IH

1 SEC. 207. REPEAL. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle A of title IV of the Illegal 

3 Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 

4 1996 (8 U.S.C. 1324a note) is repealed. 

5 (b) REFERENCES.—Any reference in any Federal 

6 law, Executive order, rule, regulation, or delegation of au7 thority, or any document of, or pertaining to, the Depart8 ment of Homeland Security, Department of Justice, or the 

9 Social Security Administration, to the employment eligi10 bility confirmation system established under section 404 

11 of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Respon12 sibility Act of 1996 (8 U.S.C. 1324a note) is deemed to 

13 refer to the employment eligibility confirmation system es14 tablished under section 274A(d) of the Immigration and 

15 Nationality Act, as amended by section 203 of this title. 

16 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall take effect 

17 on the date that is 30 months after the date of the enact18 ment of this Act. 

19 (d) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections, 

20 in section 1(d) of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Im21 migrant Responsibility Act of 1996, is amended by strik22 ing the items relating to subtitle A of title IV. 

23 SEC. 208. PENALTIES. 

24 Section 274A of the Immigration and Nationality Act 

25 (8 U.S.C. 1324a) is amended— 

26 (1) in subsection (e)(1)— 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
62 

•HR 4340 IH

1 (A) by striking ‘‘Attorney General’’ each 

2 place such term appears and inserting ‘‘Sec3 retary of Homeland Security’’; and 

4 (B) in subparagraph (D), by striking 

5 ‘‘Service’’ and inserting ‘‘Department of Home6 land Security’’; 

7 (2) in subsection (e)(4)— 

8 (A) in subparagraph (A), in the matter be9 fore clause (i), by inserting ‘‘, subject to para10 graph (10),’’ after ‘‘in an amount’’; 

11 (B) in subparagraph (A)(i), by striking 

12 ‘‘not less than $250 and not more than 

13 $2,000’’ and inserting ‘‘not less than $2,500 

14 and not more than $5,000’’; 

15 (C) in subparagraph (A)(ii), by striking 

16 ‘‘not less than $2,000 and not more than 

17 $5,000’’ and inserting ‘‘not less than $5,000 

18 and not more than $10,000’’; 

19 (D) in subparagraph (A)(iii), by striking 

20 ‘‘not less than $3,000 and not more than 

21 $10,000’’ and inserting ‘‘not less than $10,000 

22 and not more than $25,000’’; and 

23 (E) by moving the margin of the continu24 ation text following subparagraph (B) two ems 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
63 

•HR 4340 IH

1 to the left and by amending subparagraph (B) 

2 to read as follows: 

3 ‘‘(B) may require the person or entity to 

4 take such other remedial action as is appro5 priate.’’; 

6 (3) in subsection (e)(5)— 

7 (A) in the paragraph heading, strike ‘‘PA8 PERWORK’’; 

9 (B) by inserting ‘‘, subject to paragraphs 

10 (10) through (12),’’ after ‘‘in an amount’’; 

11 (C) by striking ‘‘$100’’ and inserting 

12 ‘‘$1,000’’; 

13 (D) by striking ‘‘$1,000’’ and inserting 

14 ‘‘$25,000’’; and 

15 (E) by adding at the end the following: 

16 ‘‘Failure by a person or entity to utilize the em17 ployment eligibility verification system as re18 quired by law, or providing information to the 

19 system that the person or entity knows or rea20 sonably believes to be false, shall be treated as 

21 a violation of subsection (a)(1)(A).’’; 

22 (4) by adding at the end of subsection (e) the 

23 following: 

24 ‘‘(10) EXEMPTION FROM PENALTY FOR GOOD

25 FAITH VIOLATION.—In the case of imposition of a 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
64 

•HR 4340 IH

1 civil penalty under paragraph (4)(A) with respect to 

2 a violation of subsection (a)(1)(A) or (a)(2) for hir3 ing or continuation of employment or recruitment or 

4 referral by person or entity and in the case of impo5 sition of a civil penalty under paragraph (5) for a 

6 violation of subsection (a)(1)(B) for hiring or re7 cruitment or referral by a person or entity, the pen8 alty otherwise imposed may be waived or reduced if 

9 the violator establishes that the violator acted in 

10 good faith. 

11 ‘‘(11) MITIGATION ELEMENT.—For purposes of 

12 paragraph (4), the size of the business shall be 

13 taken into account when assessing the level of civil 

14 money penalty. 

15 ‘‘(12) AUTHORITY TO DEBAR EMPLOYERS FOR

16 CERTAIN VIOLATIONS.— 

17 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—If a person or entity 

18 is determined by the Secretary of Homeland Se19 curity to be a repeat violator of paragraph 

20 (1)(A) or (2) of subsection (a), or is convicted 

21 of a crime under this section, such person or 

22 entity may be considered for debarment from 

23 the receipt of Federal contracts, grants, or co24 operative agreements in accordance with the de25 barment standards and pursuant to the debarVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:19 Nov 15, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00064 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4340.IH H4340

lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
65 

•HR 4340 IH

1 ment procedures set forth in the Federal Acqui2 sition Regulation. 

3 ‘‘(B) DOES NOT HAVE CONTRACT, GRANT, 

4 AGREEMENT.—If the Secretary of Homeland 

5 Security or the Attorney General wishes to have 

6 a person or entity considered for debarment in 

7 accordance with this paragraph, and such an 

8 person or entity does not hold a Federal con9 tract, grant or cooperative agreement, the Sec10 retary or Attorney General shall refer the mat11 ter to the Administrator of General Services to 

12 determine whether to list the person or entity 

13 on the List of Parties Excluded from Federal 

14 Procurement, and if so, for what duration and 

15 under what scope. 

16 ‘‘(C) HAS CONTRACT, GRANT, AGREE17 MENT.—If the Secretary of Homeland Security 

18 or the Attorney General wishes to have a per19 son or entity considered for debarment in ac20 cordance with this paragraph, and such person 

21 or entity holds a Federal contract, grant or co22 operative agreement, the Secretary or Attorney 

23 General shall advise all agencies or departments 

24 holding a contract, grant, or cooperative agree25 ment with the person or entity of the GovernVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:19 Nov 15, 2017 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00065 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4340.IH H4340

lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
66 

•HR 4340 IH

1 ment’s interest in having the person or entity 

2 considered for debarment, and after soliciting 

3 and considering the views of all such agencies 

4 and departments, the Secretary or Attorney 

5 General may refer the matter to any appro6 priate lead agency to determine whether to list 

7 the person or entity on the List of Parties Ex8 cluded from Federal Procurement, and if so, for 

9 what duration and under what scope. 

10 ‘‘(D) REVIEW.—Any decision to debar a 

11 person or entity in accordance with this para12 graph shall be reviewable pursuant to part 9.4 

13 of the Federal Acquisition Regulation. 

14 ‘‘(13) OFFICE FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERN15 MENT COMPLAINTS.—The Secretary of Homeland 

16 Security shall establish an office— 

17 ‘‘(A) to which State and local government 

18 agencies may submit information indicating po19 tential violations of subsection (a), (b), or 

20 (g)(1) that were generated in the normal course 

21 of law enforcement or the normal course of 

22 other official activities in the State or locality; 

23 ‘‘(B) that is required to indicate to the 

24 complaining State or local agency within five 

25 business days of the filing of such a complaint 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
67 

•HR 4340 IH

1 by identifying whether the Secretary will fur2 ther investigate the information provided; 

3 ‘‘(C) that is required to investigate those 

4 complaints filed by State or local government 

5 agencies that, on their face, have a substantial 

6 probability of validity; 

7 ‘‘(D) that is required to notify the com8 plaining State or local agency of the results of 

9 any such investigation conducted; and 

10 ‘‘(E) that is required to report to the Con11 gress annually the number of complaints re12 ceived under this paragraph, the States and lo13 calities that filed such complaints, and the reso14 lution of the complaints investigated by the Sec15 retary.’’; and 

16 (5) by amending paragraph (1) of subsection (f) 

17 to read as follows: 

18 ‘‘(1) CRIMINAL PENALTY.—Any person or enti19 ty which engages in a pattern or practice of viola20 tions of subsection (a)(1) or (2) shall be fined not 

21 more than $5,000 for each unauthorized alien with 

22 respect to which such a violation occurs, imprisoned 

23 for not more than 18 months, or both, notwith24 standing the provisions of any other Federal law re25 lating to fine levels.’’. 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
68 

•HR 4340 IH

1 SEC. 209. FRAUD AND MISUSE OF DOCUMENTS. 

2 Section 1546(b) of title 18, United States Code, is 

3 amended— 

4 (1) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘identification 

5 document,’’ and inserting ‘‘identification document 

6 or document meant to establish work authorization 

7 (including the documents described in section 

8 274A(b) of the Immigration and Nationality Act),’’; 

9 and 

10 (2) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘identification 

11 document’’ and inserting ‘‘identification document or 

12 document meant to establish work authorization (in13 cluding the documents described in section 274A(b) 

14 of the Immigration and Nationality Act),’’. 

15 SEC. 210. PROTECTION OF SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRA16 TION PROGRAMS. 

17 (a) FUNDING UNDER AGREEMENT.—Effective for 

18 fiscal years beginning on or after October 1, 2019, the 

19 Commissioner of Social Security and the Secretary of 

20 Homeland Security shall enter into and maintain an 

21 agreement which shall— 

22 (1) provide funds to the Commissioner for the 

23 full costs of the responsibilities of the Commissioner 

24 under section 274A(d) of the Immigration and Na25 tionality Act (8 U.S.C. 1324a(d)), as amended by 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
69 

•HR 4340 IH

1 section 203 of this title, including (but not limited 

2 to)— 

3 (A) acquiring, installing, and maintaining 

4 technological equipment and systems necessary 

5 for the fulfillment of the responsibilities of the 

6 Commissioner under such section 274A(d), but 

7 only that portion of such costs that are attrib8 utable exclusively to such responsibilities; and 

9 (B) responding to individuals who contest 

10 a tentative nonconfirmation provided by the em11 ployment eligibility verification system estab12 lished under such section; 

13 (2) provide such funds annually in advance of 

14 the applicable quarter based on estimating method15 ology agreed to by the Commissioner and the Sec16 retary (except in such instances where the delayed 

17 enactment of an annual appropriation may preclude 

18 such quarterly payments); and 

19 (3) require an annual accounting and reconcili20 ation of the actual costs incurred and the funds pro21 vided under the agreement, which shall be reviewed 

22 by the Inspectors General of the Social Security Ad23 ministration and the Department of Homeland Secu24 rity. 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
70 

•HR 4340 IH

1 (b) CONTINUATION OF EMPLOYMENT VERIFICATION

2 IN ABSENCE OF TIMELY AGREEMENT.—In any case in 

3 which the agreement required under subsection (a) for any 

4 fiscal year beginning on or after October 1, 2019, has not 

5 been reached as of October 1 of such fiscal year, the latest 

6 agreement between the Commissioner and the Secretary 

7 of Homeland Security providing for funding to cover the 

8 costs of the responsibilities of the Commissioner under 

9 section 274A(d) of the Immigration and Nationality Act 

10 (8 U.S.C. 1324a(d)) shall be deemed in effect on an in11 terim basis for such fiscal year until such time as an 

12 agreement required under subsection (a) is subsequently 

13 reached, except that the terms of such interim agreement 

14 shall be modified by the Director of the Office of Manage15 ment and Budget to adjust for inflation and any increase 

16 or decrease in the volume of requests under the employ17 ment eligibility verification system. In any case in which 

18 an interim agreement applies for any fiscal year under this 

19 subsection, the Commissioner and the Secretary shall, not 

20 later than October 1 of such fiscal year, notify the Com21 mittee on Ways and Means, the Committee on the Judici22 ary, and the Committee on Appropriations of the House 

23 of Representatives and the Committee on Finance, the 

24 Committee on the Judiciary, and the Committee on Ap25 propriations of the Senate of the failure to reach the 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
71 

•HR 4340 IH

1 agreement required under subsection (a) for such fiscal 

2 year. Until such time as the agreement required under 

3 subsection (a) has been reached for such fiscal year, the 

4 Commissioner and the Secretary shall, not later than the 

5 end of each 90-day period after October 1 of such fiscal 

6 year, notify such committees of the status of negotiations 

7 between the Commissioner and the Secretary in order to 

8 reach such an agreement. 

9 SEC. 211. FRAUD PREVENTION. 

10 (a) BLOCKING MISUSED SOCIAL SECURITY ACCOUNT

11 NUMBERS.—The Secretary of Homeland Security, in con12 sultation with the Commissioner of Social Security, shall 

13 establish a program in which social security account num14 bers that have been identified to be subject to unusual 

15 multiple use in the employment eligibility verification sys16 tem established under section 274A(d) of the Immigration 

17 and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1324a(d)), as amended by 

18 section 203 of this title, or that are otherwise suspected 

19 or determined to have been compromised by identity fraud 

20 or other misuse, shall be blocked from use for such system 

21 purposes unless the individual using such number is able 

22 to establish, through secure and fair additional security 

23 procedures, that the individual is the legitimate holder of 

24 the number. 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
72 

•HR 4340 IH

1 (b) ALLOWING SUSPENSION OF USE OF CERTAIN SO2 CIAL SECURITY ACCOUNT NUMBERS.—The Secretary of 

3 Homeland Security, in consultation with the Commis4 sioner of Social Security, shall establish a program which 

5 shall provide a reliable, secure method by which victims 

6 of identity fraud and other individuals may suspend or 

7 limit the use of their social security account number or 

8 other identifying information for purposes of the employ9 ment eligibility verification system established under sec10 tion 274A(d) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 

11 U.S.C. 1324a(d)), as amended by section 203 of this title. 

12 The Secretary may implement the program on a limited 

13 pilot program basis before making it fully available to all 

14 individuals. 

15 (c) ALLOWING PARENTS TO PREVENT THEFT OF

16 THEIR CHILD’S IDENTITY.—The Secretary of Homeland 

17 Security, in consultation with the Commissioner of Social 

18 Security, shall establish a program which shall provide a 

19 reliable, secure method by which parents or legal guard20 ians may suspend or limit the use of the social security 

21 account number or other identifying information of a 

22 minor under their care for the purposes of the employment 

23 eligibility verification system established under section 

24 274A(d) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 

25 1324a(d)), as amended by section 203 of this title. The 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
73 

•HR 4340 IH

1 Secretary may implement the program on a limited pilot 

2 program basis before making it fully available to all indi3 viduals. 

4 SEC. 212. USE OF EMPLOYMENT ELIGIBILITY 

5 VERIFICATION PHOTO TOOL. 

6 An employer who uses the photo matching tool used 

7 as part of the E-Verify System shall match the photo tool 

8 photograph to both the photograph on the identity or em9 ployment eligibility document provided by the employee 

10 and to the face of the employee submitting the document 

11 for employment verification purposes. 

12 SEC. 213. IDENTITY AUTHENTICATION EMPLOYMENT ELIGI13 BILITY VERIFICATION PILOT PROGRAMS. 

14 Not later than 24 months after the date of the enact15 ment of this Act, the Secretary of Homeland Security, 

16 after consultation with the Commissioner of Social Secu17 rity and the Director of the National Institute of Stand18 ards and Technology, shall establish by regulation not less 

19 than 2 Identity Authentication Employment Eligibility 

20 Verification pilot programs, each using a separate and dis21 tinct technology (the ‘‘Authentication Pilots’’). The pur22 pose of the Authentication Pilots shall be to provide for 

23 identity authentication and employment eligibility 

24 verification with respect to enrolled new employees which 

25 shall be available to any employer that elects to participate 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
74 

•HR 4340 IH

1 in either of the Authentication Pilots. Any participating 

2 employer may cancel the employer’s participation in the 

3 Authentication Pilot after one year after electing to par4 ticipate without prejudice to future participation. The Sec5 retary shall report to the Committee on the Judiciary of 

6 the House of Representatives and the Committee on the 

7 Judiciary of the Senate the Secretary’s findings on the 

8 Authentication Pilots, including the authentication tech9 nologies chosen, not later than 12 months after com10 mencement of the Authentication Pilots. 

11 SEC. 214. INSPECTOR GENERAL AUDITS. 

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after the 

13 date of the enactment of this Act, the Inspector General 

14 of the Social Security Administration shall complete audits 

15 of the following categories in order to uncover evidence 

16 of individuals who are not authorized to work in the 

17 United States: 

18 (1) Workers who dispute wages reported on 

19 their social security account number when they be20 lieve someone else has used such number and name 

21 to report wages. 

22 (2) Children’s social security account numbers 

23 used for work purposes. 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS
75 

•HR 4340 IH

1 (3) Employers whose workers present signifi2 cant numbers of mismatched social security account 

3 numbers or names for wage reporting. 

4 (b) SUBMISSION.—The Inspector General of the So5 cial Security Administration shall submit the audits com6 pleted under subsection (a) to the Committee on Ways and 

7 Means of the House of Representatives and the Committee 

8 on Finance of the Senate for review of the evidence of 

9 individuals who are not authorized to work in the United 

10 States. The Chairmen of those committees shall then de11 termine information to be shared with the Secretary of 

12 Homeland Security so that such Secretary can investigate 

13 the unauthorized employment demonstrated by such evi14 dence. 

Æ 


lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with BILLS