House bill would take illegals out of census

As the Senate's attempt at immigration reform fizzled last week, another bill related to illegal immigration that could give Missouri an additional congressional seat received considerably less attention.

On June 18, U.S. Rep. Jo Ann Emerson, R-Mo., co-sponsored House Joint Resolution 6, which would amend the U.S. Constitution to require that only citizens be counted in the apportionment of U.S. congressional districts.

Currently, all residents are counted when determining a state's representation in the House of Representatives, including illegal immigrants.

"We have a problem today that our forefathers could not envision: millions of people illegally crossing over our borders to take up residency," Emerson said in a prepared statement. "It runs contrary to our philosophy of government that we would reward the vast number of illegal aliens in the nation with consideration in Congress."

The last congressional reapportionment occurred after the 2000 Census, as required by the Constitution. All eight states gaining one or more seats in the House were in the top quarter of illegal immigrant population.

The Pew Hispanic Center, a not-for-profit group that tracks many aspects of Latino life in the United States, estimates Missouri's illegal immigrant population at between 35,000 and 60,000. Excluding them from the population total of more than 6,000,000 would have a minuscule effect on Missouri's apportionment population under House Joint Resolution 6.

States such as California, with an estimated illegal immigrant population of more than 2.5 million, could stand to lose seats in the House under the resolution. The reapportionment that would follow the resolution's passage would decrease the number of constituents per congressional district and would likely award Missouri an additional congressional seat because its large population would not be affected greatly under the terms of the resolution.

Rick Althaus, a political science professor at Southeast Missouri State University, said he thinks the original intent expressed in the Constitution was to count all residents, regardless of citizenship status.

Althaus said reapportionment also would affect the electoral college, giving states gaining House seats more say in the selection of the president.

"There are many issues to balance in these pieces of legislation," Althaus said. "National security and realistic terms for those already in the country illegally have to be considered. "

Illegal immigrant status in congressional apportionment is just one small part of the larger issue of immigration reform, according to Emerson.

Emerson said part of the challenge is holding employers accountable for employing undocumented workers. U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., also said in a prepared statement that ending amnesty for employers is the most effective way to combat illegal immigration.

Emerson said expanding the number of H-2A visas awarded each year could help employers comply with the law. An H-2A visa is a 12-month seasonal agricultural work permit for low-skilled workers.

The U.S. government currently issues about 30,000 each year, according to the Congressional Research Service, the public policy research arm of Congress. Emerson said she would like to see that expanded to close to 1 million.

Emerson said such a move would allow agricultural operations that depend on low-skilled labor to employ nonresidents legally.

Emerson added that taking care of border security was her highest priority.

"Unless we secure the border first, we're really putting the cart before the horse on this issue," Emerson said. "We can create any system addressing the millions of illegal immigrants here already, and it won't solve the issue without a secure border."

She also questioned the fairness of granting a quick path to citizenship for people who entered the country illegally.

She said the application process for residency visas should be streamlined, but immigrants should have a job offer before they enter the country and have proper identification and attempt to learn English as part of a path toward citizenship.

pwylie@semissourian.com

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