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Committee rejects amendment that would add penalties and private right of action to HB0226; underlying bill advances
Summary
A sponsor amendment to House Bill 0226 proposing civil penalties and a private right of action for employers of unauthorized workers failed on a 4–7 roll call after legal concerns. The committee then advanced HB0226 by roll call (6–5).
Members of the Senate Business, Labor and Economic Affairs Committee debated and narrowly acted on House Bill 0226 during the session.
An amendment (HB0226.002.001) brought by the bill’s backers would have amended Section 39‑2‑305 to add civil penalties for negligent and knowing employment of individuals not lawfully authorized to work, including daily fines defined in the amendment’s language. Senator Hunter opposed the amendment during committee debate, warning it "is gonna open up a can of worms," and said the single word "refer" in the draft changed the measure’s effect and risked unintended consequences. The bill’s sponsor—identified in the hearing only as the sponsor—told senators the amendment had been reviewed by legal counsel and that adding a private right of action could leave the bill vulnerable to litigation and threaten its overall passage.
The committee voted the amendment down on a roll call, 4 in favor and 7 opposed. The clerk recorded the roll‑call tally during the hearing. Following the failed amendment, the committee voted the underlying House Bill 0226 to pass on a separate roll call, 6 in favor and 5 opposed.
Senators on both sides expressed concern about protecting vulnerable workers and ensuring any enforcement mechanism is consistent with state law and not exposed to unintended legal risk. The sponsor and several members said they preferred to refine enforcement language outside of a committee amendment that could create litigation exposure for the bill as a whole.
The committee’s action advances HB0226 to the next step in the legislative process; proponents and opponents flagged the matter for further drafting and review.
