Arizona-Style Immigration Bill in Oklahoma Still Not Enough for Senator
HB 1446, proposed in the House of Representatives in Oklahoma and sponsored by Oklahoma Republican Representative, George Faught, is among dozens of similar bills in various states across the country that is modeled after Arizona's controversial SB 1070. SB 1070 put illegal immigration enforcement under state jurisdiction, requiring Arizona police officers to inquire about a suspect's residency status, among other things. Oklahoma's HB1446, as it stands, attempts to: make trafficking of immigrants a felony, stop illegal immigrants from receiving financial aid for college, require state agencies to report illegal immigrants who apply for aid, require employers to verify the legality of a potential worker's employment, prevent illegal immigrants to seek work as independent contractors, criminalize using illegal immigrants as workers, require state officers who have completed a certain training program to inquire about a motorists residency status, and allow the seizure of property of those who have committed an immigration crime.

HB 1446 Still has its Critics
While being rather comprehensive, HB 1446 still has its critics. The Republican Senator from Oklahoma City Ralph Shortey, has said, "They took all the teeth out of the bill so there would be nobody standing against it. As it is, it's a bad bill." Shortey's main criticism is that state police officers have to attend a federal training program before they can legally inquire about a motorist or suspect's residency status. Regardless, Shortey voted to send the bill to the House of Representatives, hoping it might be revised later. This was echoed by the bill's Senate author, Republican Ron Justice, who has called the bill "a work in progress." Though much like what happened in Arizona, Oklahoma Republicans fear that similar bills will be strongly opposed by The Chamber of Commerce. In Arizona, the Chamber of Commerce campaigned against further immigration legislation in the state after SB 1070 fueled boycotts and prompted a worse economic downturn on top of what the state was already facing, causing Arizona to lose millions in tourism and cancelled conventions.

SB 908 Bill
Shortey, in the Oklahoma Senate, sponsored SB 908, which passed. SB 908 would authorize the seizure of property, including vehicles and houses, of those who were convicted of immigrant trafficking and allow the proceeds of the sale of said property to be used by the enforcement agency that seized them. Professor Garcia Hernandez at Columbus, Ohio's Capital University Law School has said of this provision, "Shortey wants to dangle the carrot of free money in front of cash-strapped police departments on the belief that resisting this incentive would prove daunting." SB 908 also requires local law enforcement to inquire about a suspect's residency status-without a training program and allows, without a warrant, the arrest of anyone an officer suspects of being an illegal alien. SB 908 is likely to face stiff opposition in the House, however, much like similar bills are facing throughout the nation, though the popularity of these sorts of bills is an obvious indicator of the sentiments of many Americans.