Reps. Baxter, Gosselin, Brandenburg, Hummel, Meyer, Nitz, Shaffer, Sheen, Stakoe, Steil and Taub offered the following resolution:

            House Resolution No. 281.

            A resolution to memorialize the Congress of the United States to reject the enactment of S.2611 the United States Senate's version of the comprehensive immigration reform legislation.

            Whereas, Illegal immigration has been a simmering issue for years. It has recently reached a fever pitch due to reform efforts in the Congress of the United States. Some of the concerns regarding illegal immigration are that unregulated and high levels of illegal immigration hurt low-income workers by driving low-end wages down and that illegal immigration drives up the costs of education, health care, and other social services for all Americans. Americans also worry about a loss of cultural and national unity if a massive number of illegal immigrants only embrace their own language and culture and fail to assimilate; and

            Whereas, The United States Senate's version of immigration reform incorporates border security measures along with guest worker programs and amnesty provisions, as opposed to the United States House's version, which primarily provides border security provisions. Under the Senate legislation, illegal immigrants who have lived in the United States for five years or more would eventually be granted citizenship if they remained employed, passed background checks, paid fines and back taxes, and enrolled in English classes. The Senate legislation would also increase the number of foreign guest workers to be admitted annually; and

            Whereas, The Senate's comprehensive approach lacks the border security and law enforcement provisions necessary to protect the country from the problems related to illegal immigration. Guest worker and amnesty provisions will only encourage more illegal immigration. The Senate legislation would simply exacerbate the problems created by illegal immigration and encourage more illegal immigration; and

            Whereas, The Senate bill also does nothing to reduce or slow the influx of legal immigrants into the United States. Instead, it would allow for a five-fold increase in immigrant population over 20 years. Accommodating this massive increase will require complete overhauls of the current government immigration bureaucracy and infrastructure. In addition, this change will require increased support from taxpayers to account for this massive expansion of government, now, therefore, be it

            Resolved by the House of Representatives, That we memorialize the Congress of the United States to reject the enactment of S.2611, the United States Senate's version of the comprehensive immigration reform legislation; and be it further

            Resolved, That copies of this resolution be transmitted to the President of the United States Senate, the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, and the members of the Michigan congressional delegation.