Senate panel approves lowering E-Verify threshold to one employee
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Summary
The Commerce and Labor Committee adopted an amendment to SB 0990 that would require most private employers in Tennessee to verify new hires'legal work status, lowering the current E-Verify threshold from six employees to one; committee counsel clarified independent contractors are excluded; the bill advanced on a 6-2-1 committee vote.
Senator Hensley, the bill sponsor, told the Senate Commerce and Labor Committee that SB 0990 would reduce from six to one the number of paid employees needed before a private employer must use Tennessee's employment eligibility checks.
"This does have an amendment," Hensley said, "it lowers from 6 to 1 the number of paid employees an individual must have to be considered a private employer for the purposes of the Tennessee Lawful Employment Act." The committee discussed how the change could affect sole proprietors, small contractors and informal employers.
Several members raised concerns about compliance burdens for very small businesses. Leader Akbari said his family business had to use E-Verify and that lowering the threshold to one employee would be "an unnecessary burden on a very small business." He added that paperwork already required by federal tax forms made the new requirement duplicative for some employers.
Committee counsel Matt King advised the panel on federal definitions. "It's amending the part definition for an employee means any individual for whom an employer must complete a form I-9 pursuant to federal law and regulations and does not include an independent contractor as defined by federal law," King said, explaining that contract labor generally would not be subject to the change.
Sponsors acknowledged concerns about small-business education and said the bill permits alternative forms of verification such as a passport or driver's license rather than mandatory use of the E-Verify system. The amendment also adds a third-strike enforcement provision that could lead to local revocation of a business license after repeated violations, the sponsor said.
After brief discussion the committee voted to adopt the amendment and move SB 0990 to the Senate calendar. The committee clerk recorded the outcome as six ayes, two noes and one pass.
The bill will next be scheduled for a floor vote or additional committee consideration on the calendar.