State Business Leaders Talk Immigration Reform

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WOLO) — Monday morning state business leaders stood in front of cameras asking their customers to talk to lawmakers about immigration reform. “Bring in legalized immigrants who can do the skilled labor, have them paying taxes, learning the language, being part of the community, ” says Mark Nix, Executive Director of the Home Builders Association of South Carolina The press conference followed last week’s announcement by House Republicans, showcasing their standards for reform. A key difference in Congress is the support for a pathway to citizenship supported by Democrats and rejected by some Republicans. Here at home, those in Agribusiness say laws can hurt the state’s top industry, as they have in other states. “Passing e-verification laws in Georgia alone lost $3.2 billion in 2010,” says Chalmers Carr, Owner of Titan Farms Agribusiness alone brings in $33.9 billion to South Carolina and a workforce of nearly 200,000 workers, according to the South Carolina Department of Agriculture “We have a labor force that is very dominantly filled by unauthorized workers, but we also have a need for a future flow of workers,” says Carr Currently the top five industries, by employment, are Government, Professional and Business Services, Retail Trade, Manufacturing and Education & Health Services, according to the South Carolina Department of Commerce