Feere said that interior enforcement is also key to promote self-deportation. He said a recent executive order requiring federal contractors to use the E-Verify program to check the work eligibility of new hires is a positive step.

And he said states are starting to take their own action. In Utah, lawmakers have passed a law requiring companies that contract with the state to use E-Verify starting in July 2009. "Internal enforcement is key," Feere said. "States with serious enforcement (legislation) are seeing people leave. The problem is, internal enforcement hasn't been consistent across the country."

However, Cornelius says scattered efforts at interior enforcement aren't going to leave undocumented immigrants without job prospects.

In Utah alone, there are 297,209 registered businesses, according to the Utah Department of Commerce. That's compared to the 1,900 federal contractors in the state in fiscal year 2007, according to the FedSpending.org project of the government watchdog group OMB Watch. There are 457 companies in Utah that already participate in E-Verify. "Enforcement of employer sanctions have to be nearly uniform across industry, across region of the country for (potential undocumented immigrants) to conclude they (have) no realistic chance of gaining employment," Cornelius said.

The Government Accountability Office report can be found online at www.gao.gov.

The Center for Comparative Immigration Studies report can be found online at www.ccis-ucsd.org.

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E-mail: dbulkeley@desnews.com