2 More Firms Fined Under Immigrant Law

U.S. immigration authorities have fined two more San Diego employers accused of violating the 1986 immigration law, bringing to 19 the number of area concerns fined for infractions of the statute.

San Diego is believed to lead the nation in such violations, which observers attribute to two principal factors: the many undocumented workers along the U.S.-Mexico border here, and the presence of more than 700 agents of the U.S. Border Patrol, an enforcement arm of the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service. The patrol has more officers in the San Diego area than anywhere else in the United States.

Alberto’s Restaurant, a Mexican food chain, was fined $1,000 for violations at its outlet at 6101 University Ave., said Gene Smithburg, assistant chief patrol agent. Fined $1,500 was Rogelio’s Garage on National Avenue, he said.

Representatives of the firms could not be reached Friday afternoon.

$76,150 in Fines

All told, U.S. immigration authorities have fined the 19 San Diego-area firms a total of $76,150, officials said. The Border Patrol has assessed fines against 12 employers, and officials working from the INS district office in San Diego have fined seven others, officials said.

Alleged violators have 30 days to either pay the fines or contest the allegations and seek hearings before administrative law judges. The fines were only issued after educational visits and warnings, authorities said.

Some of the firms charged maintain that government officials provided misleading or confusing information about the new law.

100 Other Firms Warned

Apart from those fined, inspectors have warned more than 100 other firms in the San Diego area about prospective violations, authorities said.

The Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 provides stiff fines and potential jail terms for employers who knowingly hire illegal aliens. The law also requires that all employers fill out forms examining the immigration status of each worker hired since Nov. 6, 1986, the date the law was signed into law.

The U.S. Border Patrol issued the most recent fines Thursday, Smithburg said.