A bill intended to crack down on illegal immigration was on life support as the end of the wrap-up session neared, after a last-ditch effort to breathe life back into the legislation failed early Friday evening.

Rep. Arlen Siegfried, an Olathe Republican who sat on a conference committee convened to reconcile differing House and Senate versions of the bill, took to the House floor to defend the compromise legislation that emerged from the conference committee.

But his motion to set up a vote in the House failed and the bill was subsequently assigned back to a conference committee so negotiations could continue. It appeared highly unlikely that any resolution would be forthcoming during this session.

Several lawmakers, including frequent allies of Siegfried’s, said they believed the conference committee had stripped key provisions that rendered the compromise bill virtually toothless.

Rep. Judith Loganbill, a Wichita Democrat who also served on the conference committee, argued that the compromise bill established penalties for employers who knowingly employ illegal immigrants that amounted to “a slap on the wrist.”

Rep. Michael Peterson, a Wyandotte County Democrat, agreed, and encouraged House colleagues to “return this issue to the dentist’s office, so we can put some teeth in it.”

A sponsor of the original House bill, Rep. Lance Kinzer, an Olathe Republican, said he believed the compromise legislation was “fatally flawed” because penalty provisions would conflict with federal legislation, making them essentially unenforceable.

Even Siegfried conceded the bill wasn’t perfect.

“We probably have 125 different opinions on what should be in this bill,” Siegfried told Kansas Liberty.

He said the conference committee had considered including a system that would allow businesses to verify a prospective employee’s immigration status. However, the only method currently available, he said, would place an “unworkable burden” on small businesses. Siegfried added that the issue of misclassification, in which employees are hired on a contract basis, also had been a stumbling block for conference committee members and was not addressed in the compromise legislation.

Siegfried said the bill at least represented a step in the right direction. He said it would dramatically increase penalties for illegal immigrants who ran afoul of the law. In addition, the bill would stiffen bail requirements for illegal immigrants charged with crimes.

“It’s not a do-nothing bill; it’s a consequential bill,” Siegfried said. “No one is claiming this bill is perfect, but I would be proud to go back to my district and discuss this on the street.”

A subsequent motion by Siegfried that would have allowed an up or down vote on the compromise bill failed 55-67.

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