02/16/2006
The Arizona bill I blogged about earlier planned to tax wire transfers by illegals to build a much-needed fence on the Arizona border. Georgia legislators are doing the same thing to pay for illegals' health care:
ATLANTA — Illegal immigrants wishing to wire money home to their families would have to pay an additional fee under legislation approved by the House on Tuesday. The narrowly focused bill took up more than two hours of sometimes-emotional debate, a harbinger of what lawmakers will face in the coming weeks when they take up more comprehensive measures targeting illegal immigration. The Republican-backed bill, which passed 106-60 and now moves to the Senate, would require anyone wishing to wire money outside of the U.S. to prove they are either an American citizen or are in this country legally. Otherwise, they would have to pay a fee of 5 percent of the amount of the wire. The bill specifies that the money collected would be used to help cover the state’s costs for indigent health care. However, the provision is not binding because state law allows only certain transportation funding to come from a dedicated source. Supporters said the estimated 225,000 illegal immigrants living in Georgia are costing taxpayers up to a $1 billion a year in services and are a major factor in overloading public schools and emergency rooms.
[House approves wire-transfer fee for illegal aliens,By Dave Williams, Gwinnett Daily Post, February 15, 2006]
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