NEBRASKA City Immigration Law Renter License - In Plain English

8/9/2019 NEBRASKA City Immigration Law Renter License - In Plain English

1/15

Page 1 of15PEG_NEB IMM ORD 062110

Copyright 2009 UNLOCKDOCS.COM. All rights reserved. Patent Pending

A Plain English Document Translation Company

Definition for each icon you may see in your documentAction

Alert! Unclear. Bring this specific section to the attention of your attorney or document author for clarification

Clear. No further clerical assistance needed.

Plain English applied here.

This legend defines symbols found throughout your plain English document.

DISCLAIMER

By accepting this document, youre stating you understand UnlockDocs is strictly a clerical

service, and does not provide a legal interpretation of your document. This Plain English Guide

in no way supersedes the information in your original document, or replaces the value that only

an attorney or document author can provide. You are strongly advised to seek counsel from a

professional, whether attorney, licensed agent, or other document author, for further

clarification. If any conflicts appear between words or phrases, your original document and

attorney or document author prevails, and remains your ultimate authority.


2/15



* City Ordinance/FREMONT NEBRASKA ILLEGAL RENTERS* Action

This is a new ordinance, number 5165, which amends an older ordinance in Fremont, Nebraska.

This new order prohibits:

a. Harboring illegal aliensb. Hiring illegal aliensc. Renting residential space to illegal aliens

This order explains:

d. The court processe. New occupancy licenses that will be requiredf. Conflicts with existing lawsg. Definitionsh. The date this order will take effect


3/15




Federal law prohibits:

1. Aliens living in the US without meeting certain conditions2. Harboring illegal aliens3. Hiring illegal aliens

4. Illegal aliens burden the City by using public benefits and services, driving up costs.5. Crimes they commit harm the health, safety and welfare of citizens and legal aliens.6. Employing them reduces jobs available to authorized workers, and affects wages.

7. In 1996 Congress changed the Immigration and Nationality Act to require the federalgovernment to check a persons immigration status if requested by state or municipality.

8. This new ordinance falls in line with federal law which also prohibits:a. Knowingly harboring illegal aliensb. Knowingly employing illegal aliens

9. The Secretary of Homeland Security specifically praised and encouraged those states andlocal governments that require employers to participate in the E-Verify Program.


4/15




10. The City of Fremont wont interpret this new order to mean its acceptable to denyemergency medical care, emergency assistance, or legal assistance to anyone.

The Mayor and City Council of Fremont, Nebraska are adding a new section to municipal

ordinance 3139. This section ( 6-428) reads as follows:

6-428 HARBORING or Hiring Illegal Aliens

I. DEFINITIONSInterpret these words consistently with state and federal laws, including immigration law.

ILLEGAL ALIEN: Alien who isnt legally in the US according to federal law. The City wont make

this determination unless verified with the federal government.

UNLAWFULLY PRESENT IN THE UNITED STATES: Someone who is in the US illegally. The City

wont make this determination unless verified with the federal government.


5/15




DWELLING UNIT: A single residential unit with space for one or more persons, rented to others.

Its possible to have more than one rental unit on the property. In a multifamily residence or

apartment building, each until is considered a separate dwelling.

This definition doesnt apply to college dorm rooms, a room at a shelter for the homeless or

abused, or a hotel.

LESSOR: Landlord

OCCUPANT: Person the age of 18 or older renting and living in the unit.

UNAUTHORIZED ALIEN: An alien who lacks permission to work in the US legally. The City wont

make this determination unless verified with the federal government.

BUSINESS ENTITY: A person, group, partnership, or corporation doing business in Fremont.


6/15




WORK: A job. A paid activity.

E-VERIFY PROGRAM: A federal internet-based system that allows businesses to determine the

eligibility of their employees to work in the US.

SAVE: This stands for Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlement Program. It is an online

program used to confirm immigration status with Homeland Security. Its accessible by federal,

state, and local governments.

BUSINESS LICENSE: Permission issued to a registered business by the City.

II. HARBORING ILLEGAL ALIENSIts illegal for a person or business to knowingly, or carelessly allow an illegal alien to reside in a

dwelling unit.


7/15




To rent a unit to an illegal alien is considered harboring and is against the law.

To allow an illegal alien to live in the unit is also considered harboring.

An illegal alien cant enter into a contract for a dwelling unit. Therefore, if an illegal alien signs a

lease a basic condition of the lease is breached.

This is also true if an alien loses legal status after the lease begins.

This only affects rental contracts that begin after the date this ordinance becomes effective.

To see how this will be handled read sections 3 and 4 below.

III. OCCUPANCY LICENSESBefore a person can rent a place to live, each occupant, 18 or older, must get an occupancy

license.


8/15




Its each occupants responsibility to apply for the license at the Fremont Police department.

The cost is $5.

Each person occupying the space must get a license.

The landlord can acquire the license on behalf of the occupant.

It may also be possible to submit the application by fax or through the internet.

The landlord must tell each occupant about the license, and not permit them to move in until

they have gotten one.

The City applications require the following:

Full legal name

Mailing address

Address of unit

Name and address of owner/landlord

Date lease begins

Date of birth

Country of origin

Full legal name of any minors living in the unit

A US citizen or national will fill out a different application. This one carries a

notice that a false statement about status is a crime.


9/15




If the applicant isnt a US citizen or national, but is here legally, the alien can give a federal

government issued ID number instead. The alien can also state he/she is unaware of any

number given. This statement will satisfy the requirement.

Once the City receives the completed application and payment, the license will be issued.

The information given on the form will be confidential, except as required by law.

If a unit is rented without getting an occupancy license for each occupant, the landlord has

broken the law.

The landlord must have a clause in the lease stating that anyone 18 or older who doesnt have

an occupancy license is in default of the lease. If this isnt included, the landlord has broken the

law.

If a landlord knowingly allows an occupant to live in a unit without a valid occupancy license, the

landlord has broken the law. It is a defense, however, if the landlord attempted to terminate

the lease as required by law.


10/15




The fine for each violation is $100.

The fine applies to each person in the unit, age 18 or older. It will be charged daily beginning on

the 46th day after the license cancellation notice has been given as described in section 5, below.[Possible error: Appears to be described in section 4. Section 5 covers employing, not harboring.]

IV. ENFORCEMENT of HARBORINGDespite anything else in this ordinance, the Fremont Police Department (Department) will

enforce this requirement in the following way:

Immediately after issuing the license, the Department will confirm legal status with the federal

government if the occupant couldnt show he or she is here legally. This means giving

information from the application and anything else required. The Department can use the

Homeland Security SAVE program, or other federal government system.

If the information comes back to show the occupant is here illegally, the Department will send a

notice to the person at the address on the form, giving him/her 60 days to provide information

correcting federal records. The person can give the information to the Department or directly to

the federal government.


11/15




If the federal government cant confirm the occupants status, or the information is uncertain,

the Department will not take action at that time. If the federal government requires more

information or states the occupant can challenge the records, the Department will notify the

occupant.

The Department will make another attempt to confirm immigration status 61 days later. If its

confirmed that the occupant is here illegally at that point, a 45 day notice of license cancellation

will go to both the landlord and the occupant.

These steps will be taken regardless of race, ethnicity, religion or national origin.

A court review is also available:

1. If a landlord or occupant has received a notice, they can ask for a review by filing alawsuit against the City of Fremont.

2. If a suit is filed within 15 days of the date on the notice, no action will occur until thecase is heard.

3. If either landlord or occupant questions whether the Department acted properly orwants to challenge the immigration record, they can ask for a review.


12/15




4. If the suit is about whether the occupant is an illegal alien, the court will rely solely onthe federal governments determination.

The court may ask the federal government to revisit the case and reconfirm the status. This most

recent determination will be considered final.

V. BUSINESS LICENSES and E-VERIFYThe City doesnt want businesses to knowingly recruit or hire illegal aliens.

This doesnt apply to occasionally hiring casual labor for household chores, or to independent

contractors. They arent considered employees within the description of this section.

A business representative must sign a document stating its unaware of any illegal-status

employees when applying for a business permit, a City loan, or a City contract. He/she must also

show proof of registration with E-Verify.


13/15




All City agencies must register with E-Verify, and use the program to verify each employees legal

status.

If a business has employees and performs City work, its required to register in the E-Verify

program within 60 days after this ordinance goes into effect. The program must be used to

check the status of every employee hired after registration.

If a business has employees and accepts City work later than 60 days after this ordinance takes

effect, it will register and use the E-Verify program to check each new employee before the work

begins.

The City will never make an independent decision regarding an employees legal status.


14/15




The City Attorney will enforce the law in this way:

If a business doing City work or receiving a City loan doesnt cooperate with the E-Verify

requirements, there will be a public hearing. If its determined that a violation did happen, loansmay accelerate and business licenses could be revoked.

The City Attorney can bring a civil action against any business that doesnt register or cooperate

with E-Verify to a Dodge County court, and ask the court to force the business to comply.

If a business is forced to comply, a request can be made for court review. The City will suspend

further action until the court rules.

A business or employee can ask the court to review whether the City complied with this

ordinance, or other relevant laws.

This order will be carried out in line with federal immigration laws.

If any part of this order conflicts with federal or state laws, or is proven to be invalid, it doesnt

mean the entire order or any portion of it will be affected.


15/15




If there is a conflict with an existing ordinance, this ordinance is the correct one.

This order takes effect starting on the day it is passed into law.

[This was voted in on June 21, 2010]

END

Documents

NEBRASKA City Immigration Law Renter License - In Plain English