Minnesota Senate Bill SF691

Minnesota 2025-2026 Regular Session

• Introduced: 1/27/25
• Refer: 1/27/25

Caption

Employment of unauthorized individuals prohibition provision

Summary

SF 691 would create a new section of Minnesota Statutes prohibiting employers from knowingly employing an “unauthorized individual,” defined as a person who lacks federal authorization to work in the United States. The bill applies to employers in Minnesota, including the state and its political subdivisions, and excludes independent contractors from the definition of employee. The bill directs the commissioner of labor and industry to investigate suspected violations when there is credible information or a report of a violation. If a violation is found, the commissioner must order the employer to terminate the employment of all unauthorized individuals and direct agencies to suspend the employer’s licenses for up to 14 business days. The commissioner may also impose a civil penalty of $1,000 to $10,000 per violation, with the amount and suspension length based on factors such as prior misconduct, duration of the violation, and number of unauthorized workers. Use of the federal E-Verify system would create a rebuttable presumption that the employer did not knowingly hire an unauthorized individual.

Impact

The bill would add a new employment-enforcement provision to Minnesota Statutes chapter 181 and expand state oversight of employer hiring practices. It would give the commissioner of labor and industry authority to investigate, order termination of unauthorized workers, and trigger temporary suspension of business licenses, affecting private employers as well as public employers and licensing agencies. The bill also creates a state penalty structure tied to federal work authorization status and gives employers a potential defense-like presumption through E-Verify verification.

Sentiment

No committee transcript or vote record is available, so there is no documented debate or recorded support/opposition in the provided materials. Based on the bill text alone, the measure appears to reflect a strong enforcement-oriented approach to unauthorized employment, which would likely appeal to proponents of stricter immigration-related workplace compliance and concern employers subject to verification and licensing requirements.

Contention

The main points of contention are likely to be the bill’s mandatory penalties, including license suspensions and fines, and the breadth of state enforcement authority over employers. Employers may object to the compliance burden, the risk of penalties for hiring mistakes, and the impact of license suspension on business operations. Supporters would likely emphasize deterrence, workplace legality, and the use of E-Verify as a compliance safeguard. The inclusion of state and local government employers also suggests possible concern about how the law would apply to public-sector hiring and enforcement.