Pro-Amnesty Members Asked on Immigration Commission

The Senate Judiciary Committee voted Thursday to ensure that only persons who favor amnesty for hundreds of thousands of illegal aliens be appointed to a proposed commission that could decide whether the immigrants are granted legal status.

By a unanimous voice vote, the Republican-controlled panel amended a sweeping immigration reform bill to require the President to choose the nine-member panel only from among persons who say they approve of eventual legal status for those aliens who have lived in this country for a period of time.

However, Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.), while not opposing Thursday’s action, said he will seek committee approval next week to kill the idea of the commission entirely. Instead, Kennedy said he would try to amend the bill by Sen. Alan K. Simpson (R-Wyo.) to include immediate amnesty for many illegal immigrants, whose numbers have been estimated at up to 6 million.

Would Impose Hefty Fines

Simpson’s measure is designed to curb illegal immigration by imposing hefty fines on employers who knowingly hire workers here illegally. He and other backers of immigration reform contend that current laws, which do not provide for sanctions against employers who knowingly hire illegals, help to lure poor aliens in search of jobs to the United States.

Last year both the Senate and House approved immigration legislation that not only would have imposed employer sanctions but also would have granted immediate amnesty. But the two chambers failed to reconcile minor differences in the bills and the legislation died in the final days of the session.