Gov. Reynolds today signed an executive order requiring all state government departments to verify employment eligibility prior to hiring state employees, and to verify immigration status or U.S. citizenship before granting state-issued occupational and professional licenses.
“While it’s the responsibility of employers to ensure those they hire are eligible to work in the United States, in light of recent events with the former superintendent of Des Moines Public Schools, I am issuing Executive Order 15, putting safeguards in place that will verify the legal immigration or citizenship status for anyone requesting a state-issued professional license before they provide services for Iowans or are entrusted with the health, safety or education of our communities,” said Governor Kim Reynolds. “Additionally, as an employer, the state takes seriously its responsibility to verify work eligibility. While some agencies voluntarily use E-Verify as part of the hiring process, my executive action now makes it a requirement.”
Iowa will utilize two federal online systems for this purpose. E-Verify confirms work eligibility while SAVE verifies immigration status or citizenship. Both are administered by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and available at no charge to the state.
E-Verify, already used by some state agencies in Iowa, confirms an employee’s eligibility to work in the United States. It compares information from Form I-9—required of all U.S. employers to verify the identity and employment authorization of individuals hired to work in the U.S.—to records available to the Department of Homeland Security and the Social Security Administration. Within a few seconds, the system can confirm an individual’s employment eligibility or indicate that additional information is necessary before a determination can be made.
SAVE is also currently used by some state of Iowa agencies for certain government benefits. It provides point-in-time immigration and citizenship information to support benefit eligibility and licensing determinations for government agencies that provide health care benefits, social security benefits, education grants, state driver’s licenses and ID cards, and occupational and professional licenses. The system ensures that only applicants who are eligible for benefits and licenses receive them.
The Office of the Governor is actively engaged with USCIS to determine the best way to operationalize use of each system. A memorandum of understanding (MOU) is expected to be completed this month, and the user authorization process will begin immediately following with the goal of being fully operational by the end of the year.