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119-s-4769119th Congress

Illegal Immigration Cost Recovery Act

Sponsored By: Senator Scott, Rick [R-FL]

Introduced

Summary

Would significantly raise civil penalties for immigration-related violations and require annual inflation indexing. This bill would increase fines for employers who hire unauthorized workers, for people who fail to leave after a removal order, and for those who enter improperly.

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  • Employers: Raises fines for knowingly hiring unauthorized workers, increasing the lowest penalty to $1,432 and lifting caps so the most serious violations can reach as high as $57,238.
  • People ordered removed: Raises the base penalty for failing to depart after a removal order to $1,996 and adds annual CPI-U inflation adjustments beginning in 2027.
  • Improper entrants: Raises civil penalties to levels that can reach up to $1,000 and requires the same annual CPI-U adjustments starting in 2027.

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Bill Overview

Analyzed Economic Effects

2 provisions identified: 0 benefits, 2 costs, 0 mixed.

Higher fines for employers

This bill would raise civil fines on employers who knowingly hire or keep workers not authorized to work in the United States. The new penalty ranges would be: clause (i) $1,432 to $11,448; clause (ii) $11,448 to $28,616; and clause (iii) $17,172 to $57,238. Beginning October 1, 2027, these dollar amounts would be adjusted each year for inflation using the CPI-U. The Department of Homeland Security would publish adjusted amounts by December 15 each year, and the adjusted amounts would apply to penalties assessed on or after January 1 following publication.

Higher fines for noncitizen conduct

This bill would raise civil fines for noncitizens who fail to leave after a removal order and for certain improper entries. The penalty for failing to depart would rise from $500 to $1,996. The penalty for the listed improper entry paragraph would rise from $50–$250 to $200–$1,000. The bill would also reorganize and rename those penalty provisions and add annual inflation indexing starting October 1, 2027. The Department of Homeland Security would publish adjusted amounts by December 15 each year, and adjusted amounts would apply to penalties assessed on or after January 1 following publication.

Sponsors & CoSponsors

Sponsor

Scott, Rick [R-FL]

FL • R

Cosponsors

  • Sen. Lee, Mike [R-UT]

    UT • R

    Sponsored 6/11/2026

  • Sen. Sheehy, Tim [R-MT]

    MT • R

    Sponsored 6/11/2026

  • Sen. Budd, Ted [R-NC]

    NC • R

    Sponsored 6/15/2026

Roll Call Votes

No roll call votes available for this bill.

View on Congress.gov
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