JACKSON — Critics of a proposed anti-illegal immigration law in Mississippi called it an unfunded mandate for law enforcement and urged the state to avoid rushing to adopt a measure akin to Arizona’s.
An immigrant advocacy group’s lawyer also called moving toward an Arizona-styled law a form of “hysteria” by those seeking scapegoats in an economic downturn.
Patricia Ice, legal project director for the Mississippi Immigrants Rights Alliance, told a state Senate panel on Wednesday that illegal immigrants aren’t a drain on state finances. Ice said some of the state’s illegal immigrants pay income tax and all pay sales taxes.
A Senate judiciary committee held hearings on a proposal that requires police enforcing other laws to check the status of those they suspect are in the country illegally. Mississippi is among several states considering such a law.
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