DHS Announces 1,000 new I-9 Audits
Monday, November 30th, 2009[Courtesy of Tracker Corp] On November 19, 2009, DHS announced issuance of 1,000 additional I-9 Audit notices to employers across the country, focusing in particular on those providing critical infrastructure and other key resources. This is on top of the 654 I-9 audit notices issued earlier this year. Speaking at a workforce symposium in Washington, DC, Assistant Secretary John Morton (of Immigration and Customs Enforcement [ICE]) reiterated the agency’s commitment to creating a culture of voluntary compliance through aggressive investigations and outreach programs. Assistant Secretary Morton also provided recent statistics, showing the increased level of investigations and fines:
| Enforcement | Since April 30, 2009 | All of FY 2008 |
| Form I-9 Inspections | 1,069 | 503 |
| Total Fines Assessed | $15,865,181 (142 notices) | $2,355,330 (32 notices) |
| Final Orders | $798,179 (45 orders) | $196,523 |
| Cases Initiated | 1,897 | 605 |
| Debarred from federal contracts | 45 businesses/47 individuals | 0 businesses/1 individual |
DHS also released statistics from the 654 notices sent in July 2009. The ICE agents identified roughly 14,000 suspect documents, assessed over $2 million in fines, and issued warnings to 326 employers.
We link to the press release announcing these findings. We link to more details on the locations of the 1,000 companies in the latest round of audits