TOPEKA | Legislation aimed at curbing illegal immigration lingers near death at the state Capitol, and no one has issued a resuscitation order.</p><p>Last week the House blocked a full debate on compromise legislation to crack down on illegal immigrants and the employers who hire them.</p><p>The chamber&#8217;s chief negotiator, Republican Rep. Arlen Siegfreid of Olathe, said then that he would &#8220;be the most shocked person in Kansas&#8221; if his Senate counterpart called the committee back to renegotiate the bill.</p><p>The legislation failed 55-67 on a House vote on whether to begin debate on the bill lacking the signature of one negotiator, Rep. Judith Loganbill, a Wichita Democrat.</p><p>Loganbill had criticized the measure as not being tough enough on employers who hire illegal immigrants.</p><p>The vote sent the measure back to the negotiating committee so it could be revived, but many lawmakers weren&#8217;t hopeful. And now lawmakers are tied up on other issues as they try to adjourn this week.</p><p>A key sticking point for House substitute for Senate Bill 329 was the lack of criminal penalties for employers who intentionally misclassify workers as independent contractors to avoid paying taxes and having to check whether the workers are in the country legally.</p><p>But that wasn&#8217;t the only problem. Rep. Brenda Landwehr, a Wichita Republican who worked on the House&#8217;s original &#8212; and much stricter measure &#8212; called the latest proposal &#8220;smoke and mirrors.&#8221;</p><p>Although most representatives appeared to have voted against the measure because of the misclassification issue, Siegfreid estimated that about 17 opposed the bill because it did not require businesses to use the federal E-Verify system to check employees&#8217; eligibility to work in the country.</p><p>After a second round of talks last week, the committee had passed out a bill that slightly expanded the severity of felony offenses that would disqualify arrested illegal immigrants from being eligible for bail.</p><p>&#8220;I believe this is the last train out of Dodge,&#8221; warned Republican Rep. Charles Roth of Salina.</p><p>Sen. Peggy Palmer, an Augusta Republican, said it would be more honest to not have an immigration reform measure than to pass the current proposal. Palmer had sponsored her own strict reform bill early in the session.</p><p>&#8220;There was really no purpose in putting through this watered down, no-teeth bill,&#8221; she said.