SALT LAKE CITY — A Senate bill repealing Utah\'s driving privilege cards used by thousands of illegal immigrants could be replaced by a measure to keep the cards but require background checks.

FALLS CHURCH, Va. — When Mohamed Mejri, a Tunisian immigrant with a limousine business here, first learned that the State Department of Motor Vehicles had refused to issue him a new driver’s license, he thought it was a mistake. After all, he had been a licensed driver in Virginia for years.

Markos Moulitsas, in his “GOP’s Latino problem” column on Feb. 16 in The Hill, quotes without attribution figures from the 2008 elections to “prove” that Republicans are losing the Hispanic vote. Apparently Mr. Moulitsas missed the 2010 elections. Let me provide some numbers from that election:

In an effort to crackdown on businesses that hire illegal immigrants, the federal government will be auditing the employment records of another 1,000 companies. According to Bloomberg, more than 3,580 companies have already been examined since January 2009. Kelly Nantel, a spokeswoman for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), would not identify the additional 1,000 companies, but said that ICE targets companies based on tips.

This piece is really about the use of words to describe people who have entered the United States through a violation of one or more laws. In recent weeks, the Society of Professional Journalists has called on its members to use the phrase “undocumented workers” to describe those who come here illegally and hold jobs. If you want more information about this organization, take a look at the website www.SPJ.org.

OLYMPIA — A bill that would establish two tiers of driver\'s licenses — one for people who can prove they are citizens or legal residents and the other for people who cannot — drew heated debate in a House committee hearing Thursday. Under the bill, HB1577, the second category of license could not be used for identification purposes and would be so marked. Washington is one of two states — the other being New Mexico — that does not require proof of citizenship to obtain a license or Identicard.

SALT LAKE CITY — One of the honorees at Latino Day at the Capitol was not a person, but a document. The Utah Coaltion of La Raza awarded the Utah Compact a Cesar Chavez Peace & Justice Award on Wednesday. The third annual Latino Day recognized war veterans, soldiers, business owners, teachers and others for their contributions to the nation and state.

Chief Warrant Officer Fabian Salazar stood stiffly at attention, his eyes straight ahead — never betraying a single emotion. But his brain churned with memories of Chief Warrant Officer Theodore Cotco-Manes as taps echoed through the Rotunda of the Capitol. “We were best friends,” Salazar, 49, said. “Brothers. I always think of him.” Both were in the Utah National Guard, but Cotco-Manes died of leukemia in 2005.

SALT LAKE CITY — Doctors and hospitals providing emergency medical care to illegal immigrants would be able to seek reimbursement under a bill a House committee approved Wednesday. HB165, sponsored by Rep. Chris Herrod, R-Provo, would create an account in the Utah Department of Health to provide the payments, which legislative fiscal analysts estimate at $26.3 million a year.

SALT LAKE CITY — A proposed guest worker program for illegal immigrants has some of Utah\'s most conservative folks lining up behind it, while some of the more liberal types staked a position against it. At a House committee meeting Tuesday on Rep. Bill Wright\'s HB116, ranchers and farmers, including former state legislator Dave Ure, testified the bill would provide them much needed labor.

Sen. Luz Robles will unveil the fiscal note to her immigration reform bill Wednesday to the House Republican Caucus that, according to legislative analysts, would generate $11.3 million in revenue during the first six months after it is enacted and $20 million the following year.

Rep. Bill Wright’s guest-worker immigration bill passed out of committee 6-1 Tuesday despite questions about its constitutionality and its ability to be enacted without a federal waiver. The legislation would allow employers to enter into a guest-worker contract for two years and would be put into place whether the federal government proceeds with granting a waiver or not.

In state legislatures across the country, most of the immigration bills being debated aim to crack down on illegal immigration. Legislators are trying to cut off illegal immigrants from receiving public benefits, deny their U.S.-born children citizenship and force them out of states by granting local police the power to enforce immigration laws.

Arizona Rep. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) is brushing back criticism of his record on immigration as he embarks on a run for the seat of retiring Sen. Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.), saying Tuesday that hits on his record from the right won’t stick. Arizona conservatives have struck Flake hard in the past on the immigration issue, and it will undoubtedly come up in any Republican primary. Flake has supported efforts for comprehensive immigration reform in the past, teaming up with Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-Ill.) in 2007 to introduce the STRIVE Act, a reform plan that included the creation of a temporary-worker program and a path to citizenship.

A new controversial initiative went into effect Tuesday that the El Paso County Sheriff\'s Office believes will help get dangerous criminals off the street, but some say it will only lead to racial profiling. It\'s called Secure Communities and it allows local law enforcement to compare fingerprints among databases with the FBI, Department of Defense, Border Patrol and Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE

WASHINGTON (AP) — A voluntary program to run all criminal suspects\' fingerprints through an immigration database was only voluntary until cities refused to participate, thousands of recently released documents show. The Obama administration then tightened the rules so that cities had no choice but to have the fingerprints checked.