With immigration reform stalled in Congress, last year saw a surge in the number of laws passed by states hoping to better regulate the use foreign workers. As a result, employers with sites in multiple locations are facing an increasingly complex – if not conflicting – set of rules for immigrant labor. 

The National Conference of State Legislatures issued a report last month showing a significant jump in immigration-related measures passed by states in 2013. In total, 437 laws and resolutions addressing immigration were passed by state legislatures last year, a 64 percent increase over the 267 laws and resolutions passed in 2012, the report said.

NCSL officials said inaction on the part of federal lawmakers is leaving states with little choice but to fill the void by addressing ongoing immigration issues with state and local initiatives. "The immigration issue is not going away," said Virginia state Sen. John Watkins, co-chair of the NCSL Task Force on Immigration and the States. "The federal government needs to address immigration reform and consider the fiscal impacts on states. Without a national solution, state lawmakers will continue debating policy and forming local responses to address needs within their states."