shut 'em down

Supreme Court Upholds Arizona Immigration Law
High Court Upholds Arizona Law Penalizing Employers Over Illegal Immigrant Workers

Federal Law:

Federal immigration law expressly preempts "any State or local law imposing civil or criminal sanctions (other than through licensing and similar laws) upon those who employ . . . unauthorized aliens." 8 U. S. C. §1324a(h)(2).

Supreme Court ruling:

A recently enacted Arizona statute — the Legal Arizona Workers Act — provides that the licenses of state employers that knowingly or intentionally employ unauthorized aliens may be, and in certain circumstances must be, suspended or revoked. The law also requires that all Arizona employers use a federal electronic verification system to confirm that the workers they employ are legally authorized workers. The question presented is whether federal immigration law preempts those provisions of Arizona law. Because we conclude that the State’s licensing provisions fall squarely within the federal statute's savings clause and that the Arizona regulation does not otherwise conflict with federal law, we hold that the Arizona law is not preempted.

(emphasis mine)

score one for "A government of laws, not of men."

The case is Chamber of Commerce v. Whiting, 09-11