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McDaniel approves wording of illegal immigration measure Thursday, May 8, 2008 By John Lyon Arkansas News Bureau LITTLE ROCK - After rejecting two previous versions, Attorney General Dustin McDaniel on Wednesday approved the name and ballot title of a proposed ballot initiative that would make it more difficult for illegal immigrants to receive public benefits in Arkansas. McDaniel's decision allows the group that submitted the proposal, Secure Arkansas, to begin collecting the 61,974 signatures needed to place the measure on the Nov. 4 general election ballot. Supporters have until July 7 to collect the signatures. In his opinion Wednesday, McDaniel said the proposal's name, "An Act to Prevent Persons Unlawfully Present in the United States from Receiving Certain Public Benefits," was sufficient, but he decided to exercise his authority to substitute a more suitable ballot title for the one that was submitted. Jeannie Burlsworth, chairman of Secure Arkansas, said Wednesday she had not yet read McDaniel's substituted language but felt sure it would be acceptable to the group. "I want to thank him for working with us," she said. If approved by voters, the measure would require government agencies at the state, county and city levels to verify the lawful presence in the U.S. of any person 14 or older applying for public benefits. Applicants would be required to swear under penalty of perjury that they are in the country legally. Verification of lawful presence in the country would not be required for emergency medical treatment, immunizations, testing and treatment of communicable diseases, prenatal care or public school enrollment. Gov. Mike Beebe would not say Wednesday whether he supports or opposes the measure, but he said much of it duplicates existing law. "There's a lot of provisions in there that are already either existing federal law, existing state law or state regulations," Beebe said. "To the extent that it's already there, obviously we're already doing that. To the extent that it's different, we'll have to look at it and then give you a specific answer-by-answer position." Burlsworth said she does not believe state agencies are checking the immigration status of people who apply for benefits. "You can call around to any state agency and say, 'How many illegal aliens have you had in here today?' (and the answer will be) 'We don't know. We don't distinguish,'" she said. Burlsworth said volunteers with Secure Arkansas will gather signatures across the state, primarily during the May 20 primary. "We've got a grassroots level going here that I think is going to surprise the state, and I have no doubt that we will gather the signatures we need to place it on the ballot in November," she said. The group has not yet decided whether to hire professional signature-gatherers, Burlsworth said. It has less than $1,000 in its bank account now, but fundraising efforts have been on hold while the group sought the attorney general's certification, she said. McDaniel rejected the first two versions of the measure Secure Arkansas submitted, saying they contained ambiguous wording and their length could make them vulnerable to legal challenges. The Arkansas Friendship Coalition will campaign against the measure if it gets on the ballot, said the Rev. Steve Copley, the coalition's chairman. The coalition opposes punitive legislation targeting immigrants. Although Secure Arkansas claims the law would not be applied in a discriminatory manner, "in practice that often is not what happens," Copley said. |
