Today, the Department of Homeland Security announced that the Social Security No-Match Rule would be rescinded, marking the end of a long legal and regulatory battle over one of the most controversial immigration enforcement efforts of the Bush Administration.

Under the original rule, employers would have been required to act as an enforcement arm of the federal government.  The burden of fines and possible criminal prosecution would have been placed upon growers, labor contractors, and other organizations.

In September 2007, United Fresh joined six other plaintiffs in filing a Motion to Intervene that challenged the No-Match Rule on several grounds, including violations of the Regulatory and Flexibility Act and of the Administrative Procedure Act. Among other claims, the suit cited the severe economic hardship that businesses could endure in order to immediately comply with the regulations. Subsequent court rulings have ruled in United's favor, successfully blocking implementation of the rule.

"The No-Match Rule would have cost produce industry employers millions of dollars in administrative costs, so we are pleased that DHS has chosen to rescind this rule and look to develop a more effective program," said Robert Guenther, senior vice president of public policy for United Fresh. "United will continue to work with DHS on this important issue."

Also in a related development, Senator David Vitter (R-LA) has prepared an amendment to a DHS FY2010 appropriations bill that would prevent DHS from rescinding or revising the current 2007 final rule. In response, United Fresh sent a letter to the Senate opposing that amendment and as of press time, the Senate has yet to vote on Sen. Vitter's amendment.