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State Legislature

South Carolina Immigration Enforcement and Workforce Compliance Act

Status: PassedState: South CarolinaIssue: Immigration
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Summary

This bill would require South Carolina law enforcement to cooperate with federal immigration authorities when unlawfully present individuals are charged with or convicted of crimes, and it would expand mandatory E-Verify use for many employers. It also adds tougher consequences for employer noncompliance and allows immigration status-related aggravating sentencing in some cases while preserving emergency services, K-12 access, due process, and victim/witness cooperation.

Full text

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina that state and local law enforcement agencies shall, consistent with federal and constitutional law, cooperate with federal immigration authorities in the identification and transfer of individuals unlawfully present in the United States who are charged with or convicted of criminal offenses; that all public employers, state contractors, and private employers above a threshold set by state regulation shall use the federal E-Verify system for new hires, with civil penalties, license sanctions, and graduated enforcement for knowing noncompliance; and that offenses committed by unlawfully present individuals may be considered an aggravating factor at sentencing where permitted by law, while preserving due process protections and ensuring this act does not restrict emergency services, K-12 education access, or victim and witness cooperation with law enforcement.

Judicial Review

No judicial review

No Supreme Court cases are currently attached to this law.

No cases filed.

Sponsor

Brett StephensRepublican Party

Cosponsors

Archived proceedingsSouth Carolina Chamber
Debate in progress

South Carolina Immigration Enforcement and Workforce Compliance Act

Floor statements
7
Speakers
3
Chair bulletins
3

Floor statements

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Chamber bulletin
This bill awaits the Governor's action. Deadline: 2026-06-20 14:05:00 (UTC).
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Voting is now open for 72 hours.
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The Governor has signed this bill. It is now enacted.
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Result: passed.
Aye: 58 seats
Nay: 42 seats
Present: 0 seats
Total seats: 100
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Colleagues, I think Representative Whitmore put his finger on something important: this bill is not written to deny emergency care, bar children from school, or silence victims and witnesses. Those safeguards matter, and they help keep this debate where it belongs—on law enforcement cooperation in criminal cases and on whether employers should be expected to follow the rules when hiring.
As a conservative, I do not think it is extreme to say that if someone is unlawfully present and then charged with or convicted of a crime, state and federal authorities should not be working at cross-purposes. Nor do I think it is unreasonable to require broader E-Verify compliance so honest businesses are not undercut by competitors willing to look the other way. The law should protect workers from exploitation and protect taxpayers from the costs of disorder.
Now, I would caution that enforcement has to be disciplined and lawful. Due process is not a loophole; it is a guardrail. But with those protections preserved in the bill, this strikes me as a serious attempt to balance compassion with accountability. South Carolina has every right to insist on both.
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Colleagues, this bill is not about denying emergency care, shutting children out of classrooms, or telling victims and witnesses to stay silent. The text explicitly preserves those protections, and that matters. What it does say is that when someone is unlawfully present and then charged with or convicted of a crime, South Carolina law enforcement should not be working at cross-purposes with federal authorities. That is a basic rule-of-law principle, not an extreme one.
I also support the workforce compliance side of this bill because the current system punishes honest employers who follow the law while letting bad actors undercut wages and cut corners. Expanding E-Verify and attaching real consequences for employer noncompliance is how you go after the incentive structure, not just the symptom. If members are serious about reducing illegal hiring, then this is the practical place to start.
Now, I understand the concern about overreach, and I think that concern should always be taken seriously. But this bill is drafted with limits: due process remains, essential services remain, and cooperation from victims and witnesses remains protected. South Carolina has every right to expect lawful hiring, public safety coordination, and a system that does not reward employers for gaming the labor market.
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