HYDE-SMITH BACKS MANDATORY E-VERIFY LEGISLATION TO STRENGTHEN WORKER ELIGIBILITY LAW

HYDE-SMITH BACKS MANDATORY E-VERIFY LEGISLATION TO STRENGTHEN WORKER ELIGIBILITY LAW

Cosponsors 'Mandatory E-Verify Act' to Hinder Illegal Immigrant Incentive, Hiring in U.S.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.) recently joined U.S. Senator Katie Britt (R-Ala.) to introduce legislation to permanently reauthorize the E-Verify program and require its use by all employers in the United States.

The Mandatory E-Verify Act of 2026 (S.4620) would, among other things, establish a national standard for the E-Verify program, which is already mandatory across a number of states and federal entities, including the United States Senate.

"E-Verify used to confirm worker eligibility, but lax enforcement and open-border policies have weakened its effectiveness to guarantee that authorized workers, not ineligible illegal immigrants, are being hired," said Hyde-Smith, who serves on the Senate Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee.

"If you come to this country illegally, you shouldn't be here to begin with, and you shouldn't be working in the United States," said Britt. "We should enforce the law and ensure jobs go to Americans, not illegal aliens. E-Verify works, evidenced by the more than 43 million times it was used in 2025 alone. This is a common-sense bill that everyone should be able to get on board with, and I will work diligently to usher this legislation through the Senate and get it to President Trump's desk."

S.4620 would enhance civil and criminal penalties for employing illegal aliens, strengthen fraud prevention measures within the E-Verify program, and prohibit states from blocking or preventing employers from using E-Verify.

The Immigration and Nationality Act outlaws the employment of illegal immigrants, yet one of the primary drivers of illegal immigration is the perceived opportunity to work and seek employment in the United States. E-Verify, which was established during the Clinton presidency with bipartisan support, remains one of the most efficient and effective tools for verifying eligibility and cutting off a major incentive that drives illegal immigration to the United States.

According to one recent analysis, 8.3 million illegal immigrants were in the American workforce as of 2022. Another study estimates the number had grown to nearly 10.8 million as of early 2025.

Additional Mandatory E-Verify Act cosponsors include U.S. Senators Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), Ted Budd (R-N.C.), Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), James Lankford (R-Okla.), and Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.).

The Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR), NumbersUSA, Immigration Accountability Project, Heritage Action, and the National Immigration Center for Enforcement support the legislation, which has been referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee for consideration.

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