THAT’S DEBATABLE:

Last week Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed a bill banning landlords from asking tenants about their immigration status. How did you vote on this legislation and why?

I voted no on Assembly Bill 976, which passed 44-25 on the Assembly floor without the support of a single Republican. This bill infringes on local elected officials’ authority as they seek reasonable ways to partner with federal immigration authorities to better enforce laws.

In addition, some apartment owners may wish to conduct their own immigration status checks as illegal immigration status may be a risk factor for non-payment of rent or for improperly exceeding occupancy limits.

Chuck DeVore

Assemblyman

(R-Newport Beach)

I voted against AB 976 for several reasons. To begin, and perhaps most importantly, I believe this is a local issue best left to the local governments and the people of these communities to decide.

In addition, it is important to note that the problems these ordinances address involve illegal aliens, not legal immigrants, and we must not confuse the two.

This legislation shields them from inquiry by landlords merely attempting to protect their property by ensuring they do not rent to tenants who are more likely to flee the country and leave them with no recourse for lost rents and damage done. Lastly, those in support of this measure claim these local ordinances place landlords in the position of violating anti-discrimination laws. In fact, the Fair Housing Act does not prohibit discrimination based solely on a person’s citizenship status and such measures have been in place for a number of years in screening applicants for federally assisted housing.

Tom Harman

Senator

(R-Huntington Beach)

As a legal immigrant myself, I am both passionately for legal immigration and passionately opposed to illegal immigration.

I generally oppose any misguided effort to legitimize a system that depletes limited resources allocated to both citizens and legal immigrants and creates an under class that is victim to exploitation.

It is also important to point out that any type of effort to “turn a blind eye” to the problems associated with illegal immigration makes a fool of the law-abiding immigrant who is waiting in line to go through the process the legal way. Landlords could have potential tenants who possess visas that require set time limits on the user’s visit. How is one supposed to verify if a potential tenant is eligible to apply for a long-term lease if it is illegal to ask about immigration status?

Van Tran

Assemblyman

(R-Costa Mesa)