JURIST - Paper Chase: Federal government challenges Illinois immigration law

[JURIST] The US Attorney's Office for the Central District of Illinois [official website] Monday filed a federal lawsuit [press release] against state of Illinois [JURIST news archive] in an effort to invalidate a state law that wold prevent employers from using the voluntary E-Verify [DHS backgrounder] program maintained by the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) [official website]. E-Verify tracks whether potential employees can legally work in the United States. US Department of Justice (DOJ) [official website] and DHS officials say the Illinois law frustrates their efforts to combat illegal immigration [JURIST news archive] and violates the Constitution's Supremacy Clause. Supporters of the Illinois law say E-Verify is often inaccurate and therefore discriminatory.

Illinois Gov. Rod R. Blagojevich [official website] signed the Right to Privacy at Work Act into law in August after its passage by the Illinois General Assembly [official website]. The law is set to take effect January 1, 2008. AP has more. The Chicago Tribune has local coverage.

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