PHOENIX, ARIZONA -- Arizona House Bill 2779 has forced businesses to not only prepare to be compliant with the new law, but has exposed a significant weakness for many Arizona companies. That weakness is their I-9 process. Most companies are handling their I-9s like they did their payroll in the 1950's…with pen and paper! They have found inefficiencies such as wasting valuable time, lost documentation, and incalculable inaccuracies.
While no one likes the uncertainty of where this bill is headed, for now, and for the foreseeable future, this is the law and companies are scurrying to be in compliance. What companies are finding as they evaluate their own direction for compliance is that there are online tools available to both streamline the entire I-9 process and to simplify the e-verify requirement. Although many feel that the law may be modified, most businesses believe there will always be some level of legal constraint on the types of workers that can be hired and that I-9 compliance is here to stay! That is why a growing number of businesses are seeking out an electronic, digital, paperless system.
Amy Greathouse, President of the Arizona Employers' Council, Inc. has sent a message to her constituency advising that they:
· Conduct I-9 paperwork audits to be sure that every employee has a complete I-9 showing current work authorization;
· Train I-9 staff on properly completing and verifying I-9 forms and documents;
· Prepare to implement E-Verify for new hires by January 1, 2008 in case the current legal challenges continue past the law's effective date. This will include registering for the DHS E-Verify program and using it for all new-hires.
Dan Siciliano, Executive Director of Stanford Law School's Program in Law, Economics & Business and CEO of Phoenix based LawLogix Group, Inc. concurs. "Now is a good time for companies to look at how they manage I-9s. Because most companies haven't had a chance to think about their I-9 processes, they've not realized that there are now software tools to simplify the process of completing, storing, and updating these federal forms. LawLogix developed its GUARDIAN I-9 compliance system to drastically simplify the I-9 process and provide access to those companies without the time or capability to be compliant with the E-Verify requirements. The decision for a company to automate the E-Verify process should be no more difficult than deciding to install computers at workers desks. If there is any unintended silver-lining in AZ Bill 2779, it is that it might prompt companies to wake-up to the savings presented by I-9 Electronic compliance."
LawLogix is a federally approved E-Verify designated agent, giving Arizona businesses options with regards to streamlining their E-Verify compliance component of AZ Bill 2779.
Because the LawLogix Guardian software has passed a rigorous certification process by Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the seamless E-Verify integration system can save Arizona organizations time and money by:
(i) Eliminating the requirement that their staff spend hours reviewing the DHS online tutorial and taking their mandatory Mastery Test until they achieve a passing score
(ii) Saving them the task of duplicate data entry from paper I-9 forms into E-Verify
(iii) Automatically providing them with the SSA "Tentative Non-Confirmation" employee notice and "SSA Referral Letter" follow-up responses for E-Verify tentative non-confirmation results
(iv) Capturing and tracking their E-Verify results in case they are audited
(v) And much more (click on or cut and paste the below link into your browser):
www.lawlogix.com/Features/I-9/DareToCompare_Guardian.pdf
LawLogix Group, Inc. is a Phoenix based company founded in 2000. Now with over 35 employees and thousands of system users nationwide, the company was recently named to the prestigious INC. 500 list of fastest growing private companies in the United States.
Contact: Brian Taylor
Cell: 602-295-6211
Website: www.lawlogix.com/AZ_Employers_LLX.html
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AZ Employers. AZ Bill 2779. E-Verify. I-9 Compliance.
