A STATE BILL requiring construction employers on public-works projects to verify the Social Security numbers of their workers unanimously passed a House committee Wednesday, on a day when immigrant-rights activists rallied in Harrisburg to protest the passage of any anti-illegal-immigrant bills.
House Bill 380, sponsored by Rep. John Galloway, D-Bucks, is among various immigration bills being considered this week.
"For me, this issue has always been about jobs," Galloway said of the vote by the House Labor and Industry Committee. "There [are] estimated to be 35,000 illegal workers in the construction industry alone" in the state. Under the bill, workers' employment eligibility would be checked by the federal E-Verify program.
