Cherokee County continues bottom-up approach of keeping the heat on illegal immigrants.

From the AJC:

The Cherokee County Commission is making another stab at cracking down on illegal immigrants with an ordinance that makes renters prove they’re here legally and threatens the business licenses of companies with undocumented workers.

Buzz Ahrens, chairman of the Cherokee County Commission, said the new ordinance is meant to send a strong message on a problem that the federal government has failed to address.

“Something needs to be done, and this is a bottom-up approach,” Ahrens said.

Ahrens said he expects the commission will “get a lot of flak” over the provision on renters and could end up modifying the ordinance so it deals only with businesses.

He said county officials are convinced that illegal immigrants are costing locals jobs, adding to the burden on the county’s hospitals and government services and even playing a role in the gang problem.

County Manager Jerry Cooper said, at one point, more than 20 percent of the inmates in the county jail were illegal immigrants. “That’s a direct cost,” he said. “That’s a significant cost.”