A look at immigration remedies is sought

A House committee gave a nod to directing the Attorney General's office to look into costs associated with illegal immigration that may be recovered from the federal government.

The House Political Subdivisions Committee voted 6-0 Friday to send a substitute version of HB320 to the House floor for debate.

The bill's sponsor, Rep. Karen Morgan, D-Cottonwood Heights, said the substitute version requires the Attorney General's office to "figure out what those remedies are and what he can do." The bill, which originally would have required the Attorney General's office to seek federal compensation, is modeled after legislation passed in Colorado last year.

Morgan said the bill would not be an audit of the costs associated with illegal immigration, but rather "looking at what we can do to pursue remedies ... We decided we needed to do this first step."