Immigration Initiative Is Left Out of Budget

Chairman Says Funds Will Be Found

Prince William County Executive Craig S. Gerhart will propose a budget that leaves out money for the county's crackdown on illegal immigration, which was approved by supervisors after it divided the community last fall.

Like other jurisdictions in the Washington area, Prince William is facing declining revenue because of the sagging housing market. In the coming budget year, county officials will probably have to make cuts in jobs and services such as education and consider raising the property tax rate to close a projected $51 million shortfall.

County staff will leave out the $3.3 million cost of the immigration initiative when Gerhart submits his spending plan next month, forcing the Board of County Supervisors to decide what to cut in the budget in order to pay for the new program.

"The budget challenge is balancing an acceptable level of community progress with the harsh fiscal reality," Gerhart said.

Board Chairman Corey A. Stewart (R-At Large), who rode the anti-illegal-immigrant effort to reelection in November, said the board would come up with the money for the crackdown.

"After all that dialogue, how could we not fully fund and implement it?" Stewart said. "We made a promise to the community."

Supervisors voted in October to deny certain services to illegal immigrants and increase police enforcement of immigration laws. Gerhart is essentially forcing a countywide discussion of how that program should be ranked as a priority.

That discussion will start today, when supervisors will be briefed on how the county will implement the board's directive to restrict illegal immigrants' access to substance-abuse counseling; homeless assistance; programs for the elderly, including in-home care; and some other services.

Few county residents use some of those services, according to a staff analysis. Other programs, such as limiting business license applications, will require a labor-intensive process to determine the legal status of individuals using them.

Earlier this month, county police officers began training on how to check the immigration status of anyone suspected of breaking the law, no matter how minor the crime. The 500-plus force is expected to finish training by mid-March. Police Chief Charlie T. Deane is scheduled to brief the board Feb. 5.

Supervisor Frank J. Principi (D-Woodbridge), who opposed the anti-illegal-immigration resolution as a candidate last fall, said some parts of the program should be funded, such as initiating the deportation of criminal illegal immigrants. But he said he is reluctant to pay for everything.

"I'm not certain we can put a price tag on the whole thing and say yes," he said. "There are too many priorities that need to be addressed. We'll have to pick and choose."

Even if it is never fully implemented, the resolution has had its intended effect, said Ricardo Juarez, general coordinator of Mexicans Without Borders. Illegal immigrants are leaving Prince William County, he said.

Day laborers use a 7-Eleven in Woodbridge as an informal hiring site. It was the scene of two raids in the fall of 2004.

Men still gather there, but in smaller numbers. Swing by at 7 or 10 in the morning, and 30 laborers can be found waiting for work.

They never know how much they are going to make from day to day. But they keep coming back because they see no other option.

"Obviously, I am not welcome," said Juan Carlos Celaya, 28, who moved to Woodbridge from Honduras. "But when you have no legal documentation, what else can you do?"