But local immigration advocates say they have hope the bill will be re-introduced and both parties will compromise on legalizing the nation's more than 12 million undocumented immigrants.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid pulled S.1348 from the Senate's agenda Thursday after he was unable to get the 60 votes needed to conclude debate. The Senate deadlocked because leaders couldn't agree on a set number of amendments that the bill's opponents would be allowed to offer, according to The Associated Press.

Utah Sens. Bob Bennett and Orrin Hatch voted to continue debating the bill. Bennett's and Hatch's spokespeople said the Republican lawmakers were not available for an interview Friday because they were en route to Utah.

Bennett last week called S.1348 "the right thing to do." But he voted against cutting off debate, a key procedural test of whether the bill would pass.

"Democrats and Republicans, together with the White House, have worked for months to put forward a bipartisan solution. Ending the debate prematurely, as the Democratic leadership did this week, was a mistake. This issue deserves thorough consideration in the United States Senate," Bennett said in a statement Friday.

Hatch, also in a prepared statement Friday, said he "couldn't support the bill the sponsors tried to force through," and it has "glaring flaws."

"Some of its provisions are unworkable and ineffective. And most people believe it is far too lenient on those who broke the law to get here, and we must be fair to those who are in the process of immigrating the right way," Hatch said. "A limited guest worker program must be created for our American - and specifically Utah - businesses in need of foreign workers. I believe we can find a fair, compassionate and lawful way to deal with the illegal immigrants already in this country, most of whom are decent, hard-working people."

In Utah, anti-illegal immigration activists said the bill is failing in the Senate because more and more Americans are saying there should be no compromise for illegal workers who break the law.

William Bohmholdt, a Sandy resident and Utah Minuteman Project member, said the Senate debate is really more about money and politics than immigration reform because "laws are on the books but they're not being enforced."

Either way, U.S. businesses want to continue hiring illegal immigrants who work twice as hard for lower wages, he said.

Still, Bohmholdt said Bennett and Hatch might actually be listening to those Utahns who have recently rallied at their offices in Salt Lake City and St. George to demand they vote against S.1348. The protesters have said they consider the bill an amnesty because it would provide legal status for undocumented immigrants through a guest-worker program in which they would have to pay a $5,000 fine to get a visa.

"People are really getting upset about what's going on," Bohmholdt said.

Latino community advocate Tony Yapias said he's not too worried about the bill being killed or Hatch and Bennett voting against it. He said he has hope the two parties will come to some agreement.

Yapias said the community, especially Latinos, churches and business leaders need to continue calling on Congress to support the legalization of undocumented workers and their families.

"At some point, we might have to take to the streets again," said Yapias, who was a key organizer of an April 2006 pro-immigration rally in Salt Lake City that drew more than 40,000 people.

jsanchez@sltrib.com