Homan's I-9 Audit Blitz Cleared Federal Review — What Comes Next for Employers

White House Border Czar Tom Homan applauds as US President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign rally at the Oncenter Convention Center in Syracuse, New York, on October 9, 2026. (Credit: Photo by Mandel NGAN / AFP via Getty Images)

The Briefing

• White House Border Czar Tom Homan announced Sunday that a major new worksite enforcement plan has cleared Homeland Security Investigations and is expected to land on DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin's desk within days, according to reporting published October 19, 2026.
• The strategy calls for private contractors to conduct large-scale I-9 audits and refer both administrative and criminal red flags to federal investigators — shifting the enforcement target from workers to the businesses that hire them.
• Penalties for employers caught knowingly hiring unauthorized workers can reach $28,619 per violation; separate paperwork fines for substantive I-9 form errors range from $288 to $2,861 per form, according to current ICE civil monetary penalty schedules.
• The plan's fate rests with a DHS secretary who has publicly signaled a preference for targeted individual arrests over broad worksite sweeps, creating an unresolved tension at the top of the department.