Opinion: E-Verify is the best way to end Texas' border crisis

Gov. Greg Abbott is trying to fix Texas' unprecedented border crisis -- but the Biden administration is undercutting him every step of the way.For starters, the governor has deployed unarmed National Guard to interdict those entering illegally from Mexico and take them to ports of entry -- only to have the Alejandro Mayorkas-led Department of Homeland Security welcome over 50% of them into the country by granting asylum reviews, parole, and work authorizations.

Gov. Abbott has also ordered Texas officials to install floating barriers in the Rio Grande to deter migrant crossings. The Biden administration immediately sued to dismantle them. And the governor ordered law enforcement to install concertina wire along the border -- only for the Biden administration to cut through it, allowing migrants to enter.

Texas sued the administration regarding the wire and the floating barriers, and those cases are currently working their way through the court system.

But no matter what happens in these lawsuits, it's clear that the Biden administration will never willingly secure the border -- and will keep fighting Texas' attempts to install barriers.

That's why it's time for Gov. Abbott to embrace arguably the most effective anti-illegal-immigration policy of all -- one that isn't vulnerable to federal interference: E-Verify.

E-Verify is a free online service that detects whether newly hired employees are legally eligible to work in the United States. States that require all businesses to use E-Verify have experienced a 33% to 83% drop of "illegal presence" in the state. This includes Texas' neighboring states Arizona and Mississippi.

It's extremely user-friendly. All employers have to do is submit the information normally captured on an I-9 form -- which employers are already required to collect -- via the browser on any computer. That information is then instantly cross-referenced with data from the Social Security Administration and U.S. Department of Homeland Security to determine whether a person has authorization to work in the United States.

The system is highly accurate, with over 98% of employees cleared for work almost instantaneously. Of the remaining fraction that aren't immediately cleared, the vast majority are ultimately found to be in the country illegally.

It's no mystery why E-Verify is so effective. Most illegal migrants come here in search of better jobs. If migrants know they'll struggle to find work due to E-Verify, many won't make the dangerous and costly journey in the first place. Others will simply move on to other states that are vulnerable to their unwelcome incursion because those states do not use E-Verify.

Both chambers of the Texas Legislature introduced mandatory E-Verify bills during the regular legislative session, and lawmakers are hoping to bring them to the floor in an upcoming special session.

The measures are overwhelmingly popular with voters, according to a recent Rasmussen survey. Roughly 82% of Texas Republicans, 70% of Independents, and even 56% of Democrats support mandatory E-Verify.

Law enforcement encountered a record 2.47 million migrants at the southern border in fiscal year 2023, which just ended. That's up 4% compared to 2022 -- the previous all-time record -- and 40% from 2021, President Biden's first year in office.

Gov. Abbott deserves credit for trying to erect border barriers and the various other measures he's taken to combat illegal immigration. The border is out of control -- and the Biden administration clearly has no interest in securing it.

However, a strategy that's focused solely on obstructing people from getting in -- rather than deterring them from even attempting the journey or staying if they arrive -- will fall short of what's needed. It's time for Gov. Abbott to join lawmakers -- and the overwhelming majority of Texans -- in supporting mandatory E-Verify.

James Massa is CEO of NumbersUSA.

This article originally appeared on Corpus Christi Caller Times: Opinion: E-Verify is the best way to end Texas' border crisis