REP. NANCY MACE PROPOSES $1,000-PER-DAY FINE FOR EMPLOYERS WHO HIRE ILLEGAL ALIENS

South Carolina Employer Immigration Proposal would strengthen E-Verify enforcement, revoke business licenses for repeat offenders

MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. – January 9, 2026 – Representative Nancy Mace today proposed the South Carolina Employer Immigration Compliance Act, legislation that would impose a $1,000-per-day fine on businesses that knowingly hire illegal aliens.

“If you’re hiring illegals to undercut your competitors and drive down wages for South Carolina workers, you’re going to pay for it,” said Mace. “A thousand dollars a day, every day, until you stop. And if you keep doing it, you lose your business license. Period.”

South Carolina has required all employers to use the federal E-Verify system since 2012, one of the strongest laws in the country. But current penalties are weak: a first offense results in only a 10-to-30-day license suspension, with no significant financial penalty.

The South Carolina Employer Immigration Compliance Act would:

• Impose a $1,000-per-day fine for each illegal alien employed, starting from the date the employer knew or should have known

• Increase fines to $5,000 per illegal for a second offense and $10,000 per illegal for a third offense

• Strengthen license suspensions: 30-90 days for first offense, 90-180 days for second, permanent revocation for third

• Require employers who fail to use E-Verify to pay $1,000 per day until they comply

• Claw back any state economic development incentives, tax credits, grants, abatements

• Ban violators from receiving state incentives for five years

• Create a citizen complaint hotline so anyone can report violations

• Require at least 500 random employer audits per year, targeting high-risk industries

“Businesses that play by the rules shouldn’t have to compete against businesses that cheat by hiring illegal labor,” said Rep. Mace. “And South Carolina workers shouldn’t have their wages driven down by employers breaking the law.”

Florida passed similar legislation in 2023, requiring E-Verify for employers with 25 or more workers and imposing $1,000-per-day fines. South Carolina’s existing law already covers all employers and is stronger than Florida in this regard. This bill simply adds the enforcement that has been missing.

“We’ve had E-Verify on the books for over a decade. It’s time to enforce it,” added Rep. Mace.