In 2004, Arizona voters passed Proposition 200, a measure designed to prevent alleged voter fraud by illegal immigrants. Instead, as News 21 documented, Prop 200 has disenfranchised thousands of legitimate voters. In 2006, voters overwhelmingly approved four initiatives against illegal immigrants, including measures denying them bail and punitive damages in civil count cases. Now, the heated battle over immigration in that state has led to another ballot initiative, this one fervently opposed by anti-immigration activists.

Proposition 202, or the “Arizona Stop Illegal Hiring Act,” sounds like a measure proposed by immigration restrictionists. But in fact the initiative was proposed by a pro-business coalition. The measure would mandate that immigration complaints against businesses be signed and dated, rather than anonymous as they are now. It would also set penalties for businesses found employing illegal workers and expand the definition of identity theft to include anyone who knowingly accepts false identification.

Arizona’s best-known illegal immigration crusader, state Rep. Russell Pearce (R-Mesa), opposes Proposition 202, because it would overrule parts of his 2007 Employer Sanctions Law, which imposed harsh penalties on businesses found employing illegal immigrants and allowed anonymous complaints against such businesses. Governor Janet Napolitano called Pearce’s law a “business death penalty,” and businesses agreed—thus, Prop 202.

Anti-immigration activists around the country are backing up Pearce, with some going so far as to accuse Prop 202′s backers of “treason.” Meanwhile, businesses say the 2007 Employer Sanctions Law is unfair and will have unintended consequences.

A poll shows Prop 202 passing with 63 percent of the vote, but it is unclear whether voters mistakenly believed it was an anti-immigration measure. The name certainly seems designed to take advantage of Arizona’s conservative populist furor against “illegals.”

(Wikipedia photo)