ROCKWALL (WBAP/KLIF News) – Rockwall County has become the first in Texas to become a part of the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s “IMAGE” Program.
IMAGE stands for “ICE Mutual Agreement Between Government and Employers. It’s a voluntary program that was established in July 2006 and is offered through the Department of Homeland Security.
According to the ICE.gov website, it was established to “combat unlawful employment and reduce vulnerabilities that allow illegal aliens to gain such employment. It also enhances fraudulent document awareness through education and training.”
As part of the program, employers in Rockwall will be required to conduct annual I-9 audits to weed out unauthorized workers.
“Becoming and IMAGE partner and member is a responsible decision for any organization. I am glad that Rockwall County chose to ensure that it has a lawful workforce,” said ICE’s Special Agent Katrina Berger.
The county had to go through months of I-9 and discrimination training to become certified.
County Judge David Sweet said it was easy for leaders to decide to get on board with the program.
“We’re a nation of laws and we have tremendous respect for those laws in Rockwall County. We want to do things the right way and I think that’s important,” he said.
In terms of miles, Rockwall County is the smallest in Texas. According to a 2015 census, 90,861 people resided in the county.
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