This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2010, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Phoenix • Arizona Sen. Russell Pearce met with Utah lawmakers Monday afternoon and suggested a citizen ballot initiative run parallel with the illegal immigration bills expected to be introduced in the upcoming legislative session.
Pearce said a ballot measure would act as an insurance policy in case the bills are weakened through legislative compromise and would serve as a referendum on politicians who didn't support tough anti-illegal immigration legislation.
"I think it passes in Utah," he said. "I think there are some who want to water it down to give it no teeth. But if you water it down, there is no need to write it in the first place."
But several legislators said they were still too early in the fact-finding process to consider such a bold move and Senate Majority Leader Scott Jenkins, R-Plain City, said the outcome for any immigration-related bill — let alone an initiative process — was still "wide open."
"We're not even halfway done learning about all the aspects of this issue," Jenkins said. "We have a lot more information to gather still."
A dozen lawmakers, along with Lt. Gov. Greg Bell, met with a variety of public and private officials in Arizona to learn about the state's pioneering effort to tackle illegal immigration, including enforcement difficulties, economic impacts and public sentiment about the controversial issue.
A bill authored by Rep. Stephen Sandstrom, R-Orem, will mirror much of Arizona's law. It will be introduced in January.
The trip was arranged by Bell and lawmakers are footing the bill for the trip out of their own pockets or campaign funds.
Cost estimates are about $700 per person.
Pearce said he has reviewed Sandstrom's bill and believes it would stand up to constitutional challenges and that it's "a good bill" in its current form.
Lyle Mann, executive director of the Arizona Peace Officers Standards and Training Board, cautioned the group at its 45-minute presentation to pay attention to the language used in any bill to avoid legal dust-ups and confused interpretations.
"Be careful about the wordsmithing, whatever they do," Mann said. "Pay attention to the words to avoid conflicts."
When asked what kinds of conflicts would arise, Mann simply smiled and said, "No comment."
The 13-member board oversees Arizona's 15,000 law enforcement personnel, and enforcement training for the new law has been "hurried," according to compliance manager Bob Irish. He also estimates only about 6,000 peace officers have gone through the training, which included watching a 90 minute DVD, as well as a few written handouts about the legal status of those suspected of being in the United States illegally.
Irish also said there was nothing written into the law that required continuing training for peace officers — meaning once they watched the DVD, the state mandate for compliance by local law enforcement entities was fulfilled.
Mann said Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer intended, with the signing of the bill, to require enforcement of the law without telling each enforcement agency how to actually train for compliance. But local law enforcement in Arizona has been divided on how effective that approach is. And Irish said some officials have worried that too much emphasis on enforcing immigration could drain resources for investigations into other serious crimes.
The Utah delegation digested much of its information in closed-door meetings throughout the day — dutifully escorted by Arizona Secretary of State Ken Bennett around the state Capitol and to a several offsite locations.
In addition to law enforcement and elected officials, the group met privately with the Phoenix Chamber of Commerce — an eye-opening presentation that left Utah Senate President Michael Waddoups, R- Taylorsville, and Jenkins worried about the impact of legislation on business.
Waddoups said since the Arizona bill passed, chamber officials said they have had no new bookings for conventions in Phoenix. He also said tourism revenue was down for the city, though he was troubled that they didn't provide hard data to support that claim.
But the star of the day was Pearce, who said Utah was joining a national tide of anger toward federal inaction on illegal immigration.
He urged the lawmakers to "stand strong against law breakers" and promised them total support as they moved forward in tackling the immigration issue.
"This is a crisis that threatens the entire country," he said. "The federal government isn't doing its job and states like Arizona, Utah and 22 others are fed up. We are taking our country back."
The lawmakers will make a trip from Tucson to Nogales on Tuesday for a tour and presentation at the border to learn more about immigration enforcement before returning to Utah.