Proposal to Drive Illegal Immigrants Out of Carroll County

Carolyn Hileman* | October 27, 2007

He has no green card, and soon Agustin Perez may not be able to get a library card here in Westminster. “Everybody needs opportunities. Come here for a better life. We don’t make troubles.” But trouble lies ahead for illegal immigrants, like Perez, if Carroll County Commissioner Michael Zimmer can successfully cut them off from county services. “If you’re not here legally, you shouldn’t be expecting our county taxpayers to be providing services to you,” said Zimmer, “That’s the bottom line for me.”

A pair of Northern Virginia counties have already passed laws requiring proof of citizenship to receive basic county services, and Zimmer wants to follow suit as more and more immigrants seek work here. “They’re every where,” said Manchester contractor Ed Conrad, “It’s become an every day thing, and they work right beside everyone else.” You could call it a sign of the times in this country—the changing face of the labor force. In many instances, foreign workers are doing the heavy lifting—the jobs on one else wants to do. “If everyone left there would be a demand for new labor, cause I know there’s a lot of companies working them,” said Conrad. Zimmer is convinced driving the immigrants out would drive wages back up. “It would send a message that maybe there’s somewhere else that you’d rather be living.”

But for workers like Agustin Perez, who supports his family back in Mexico with half of his wages, there is no choice. “We can’t go to Guatemala, Brazil or Argentina, because those countries are very poor also. We come to this country cause it’s richer.” “The American Dream?” “The American Dream.” Zimmer’s proposal would require the approval of the county, its local delegation and the General Assembly before it ever could become law.

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