In honor of Constitution Day, two teams of UA students will debate the merits of Alabama’s illegal immigration law, also known as H.B. 56, in the Ferguson Center Theater at 3:00 p.m.

The debate will center on the issue of the federalism in enforcing immigration law and whether Alabama’s authority is preempted by the national government’s power over immigration.

Political science professor Joseph Smith said the sponsors chose H.B. 56 because it is controversial and relates to the important constitutional issue of federalism.

“This is a great introduction to the legal issues surrounding federalism and national preemption of state laws,” Smith said.

The debate will specifically focus on section 27 of the law, which prohibits Alabama courts from enforcing any contract made by someone in the country illegally.

“This provision is important because it means that if an undocumented alien signed a rental contract, a work contract or an agreement to purchase something, and the other party to the contract didn’t fulfill their obligations, the alien would not be able to use the state courts to have the contract enforced,” Smith said. “The provision makes it much easier for unscrupulous people to disregard the promises they make to undocumented aliens.”

A team from Smith’s Constitutional Law course will argue that Alabama has overstepped its authority in passing section 27, while a team of students from UA’s Mock Trial team, coached by lawyer and political science doctoral student James Todd, will argue that section 27 is a proper exercise of state police authority.

“Section 27 was selected because it raises interesting questions of how far the states may go using their police powers over contracts to regulate the activity of illegal aliens,” Todd said.

The police powers of the states are recognized under the 10th Amendment of the Constitution and traditionally extend to subjects involving public health, education, welfare and safety, Todd said.

“The question of who may enter into a contract has been recognized to be part of traditional state police power,” Todd said.

The debate will begin at 3 p.m. in the Ferguson Center Theater and is sponsored by the College of Arts and Sciences and the Department of Political Science.