Without congressional extension, E-Verify could shut down this week

As it begins to become a standard hiring practice for legitimate employers, E-Verify, the free, online program run by the Department of Homeland Security, will shut down thus week unless it is reauthorized by Congress. The program enables employers to quickly and simply check that new hires are indeed eligible to work in the United States.

New data from the Department of Homeland Security’s Citizenship and Immigration Services shows that online employer queries to the system are already approaching 3 million in 2009, nearly half the total 6.6 million queries in 2008. The total for 2008 was more than double the use of the system in 2007. If the usage for 2009 continues at the same rate, the number of employer queries for this year will be 442% greater than in 2007.

In 2008, about one of eight new hires nationwide was checked through E-Verify. If the projected growth rate continues, one-quarter to one-third of all new hires will be verified by the E-Verify system, putting it well on the way to becoming a standard hiring practice for all legitimate employers.

Increased employer satisfaction with E-Verify – demonstrated by the steady increases in employer sign-ups and queries with E-Verify – indicates that E-Verify is one of the most successful programs initiated by the government.