Texas needs E-Verify to curb illegal immigration; protect habitat

Texas is being sued for installing floating barriers in the Rio Grande that critics say violate environmental law. NumbersUSA’s Scientific Director Leon Kolankiewicz agrees that the barrier cause real damage, but adds that so too does unrestricted immigration. Texas doesn’t have to choose between stewardship and security, argues Leon. The Lone Star State just needs to choose E-Verify.

The following are excerpts from Leon’s oped, “Texas needn’t choose between protecting the environment and securing the border,” in the Austin American-Statesman, July 9, 2024:

Aside from the direct damage done by illegal border crossers, the unprecedented surge of illegal immigration into Texas has contributed to the rapid growth of the U.S. population. That, in turn, among other things, helps drive habitat-and-farmland-devouring urban sprawl.

Texas accounted for 30% of the nation’s population increase between July 2022 and July 2023. Many of those newcomers were illegal immigrants, adding to the 1.6 million who already resided in Texas illegally as of 2021.

This population explosion, which has been ongoing for decades, has taken its toll on the state’s environment. From 2002 to 2017, Texas lost over 2,600 square miles of open space to development – and 73% of that sprawl was due to population growth . . . .

. . . . This is why, more than physical barriers, we should seek policy barriers that curb illegal immigration.

A state-level mandate requiring all businesses to use E-Verify, the free federal program that determines whether newly hired employees are in the country illegally, would deter border crossings without the need for expensive and ecologically harmful physical barriers. Currently, 21 states require at least some employers to use E-Verify, and several require it for virtually all employers. But right now, Texas only requires it for state agencies and their contractors.

A landmark 2017 study by the Dallas Federal Reserve found that “states with universal E-Verify policies typically experienced large reductions in the number of likely unauthorized immigrants.” . . . .

. . . . Federal courts will soon rule on the legality of the barriers. But Texas policymakers don’t need to wait for judges to act. They could deter illegal crossings – while protecting the environment – by requiring all businesses to use E-Verify.

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Read the full oped in the Austin American-Statesman.

Explore More: State E-Verify legislation; Our Studies; TexasSprawl.com

Take Action: All actions here.

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