HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. — Legislation tackling illegal immigration in the workspace was filed last month. It would place tighter restrictions on businesses who hire undocumented workers.

What You Need To Know

  • SB 1498 was filed in February by State Senator Blaise Ingoglia

  • The bill would place tighter restrictions on businesses who hire undocumented workers

  • Luz Gaona, the owner of Southshore Bilingual Therapy, says this bill would add another layer of work for them

Working with children is Luz Gaona’s favorite part of her day. She’s a speech language pathologist.

Gaona opened her own practice five years ago, called Southshore Bilingual Therapy in Wimauma.

Right now, she’s exempt from the state’s 2023 E-Verify law because she has fewer than 25 employees, but new legislation being proposed would end that exemption.

“It’s really putting your smaller business in a position that could really risk their livelihood,” Gaona said.

Currently, there are bills in both the Florida House and Senate that would require all private businesses in Florida to document a new employee’s status to work legally in the U.S. through the federal E-Verify program.

Businesses that don’t comply could face stiff penalties, with fines up to $500,000 and suspension of a business license for violations.

"There is no question about what we need to do, but it does add more admin work on our end, to comply with one more thing, even though we are a smaller corporation, we are being held under the same umbrella as big corporations," Gaona said.

Sen. Blaise Ingoglia, who filed the bill in the Senate, calls it a “zero tolerance” policy for employers who knowingly hire illegal immigrants.

The bill also includes a provision that would allow people to sue employers if an undocumented worker they hired causes injury or death.

"Illegal immigrants that come over and injure or kill people, basically, there’s no recourse for the families, and I think there should be," said Ingoglia. "Recourse should be for the businesses that hire them in the first place."

He says this legislation will help Florida set its own guidelines.

"While the federal government is trying to take strides in fixing that, we also have to get rid of, especially, the criminal illegal immigrants from our community, so this is an effort to keep everyone safe, but also put pressure on the federal government to make sure they’re reforming the system," he said.

While Gaona says she will comply with any laws that are passed, she’s also concerned about how it could impact small businesses like hers.

In an interview, Florida District 59 State Representative Berny Jacques said that some businesses don’t want to see the state crackdown on the issue because it affects their bottom line, but reinforces the legislation.

"We have to do what’s right, the law is the law," he said.