TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Public employers and companies that contract with them will have to use the federal e-Verify database to determine employees' eligibility to work in the U.S. under a bill sent to Gov. Ron DeSantis by the Senate on Thursday evening.

Private employers would have the option of using e-Verify or a form that's already required under federal law to verify employment eligibility. The bill passed on a 23-17 vote after it had bounced back and forth between the House and Senate. It underwent several changes in recent weeks.

“This has been a long journey,” said Republican Sen. Tom Lee, the bill's sponsor. “I really appreciate the full-throated support of Governor Desantis. Without him, I wouldn’t be standing here with this bill.”

DeSantis called on lawmakers to pass an e-Verify bill during his State of the State address that opened the annual 60-day legislative session in January. He said use of the database would boost wages now “depressed by cheap foreign labor.”

The bill passed the day before all business other than the budget was to wrap up.

The House passed the bill on Wednesday, but stripped out language that would have allowed the state Department of Economic Opportunity to conduct random audits to make sure businesses were complying with the employment verification law.

Instead, the House included language stating that the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, the attorney general or state attorneys could demand employment records to verify compliance with the law.

Business could be fined $500 for violations and have their licenses suspended. Three violations in three years could result in licenses being revoked.

The Senate accepted the House language. Democrats opposed the bill, arguing when it first passed the Senate that it would create a burden on businesses, that e-Verify is flawed and the state shouldn't be enforcing federal law.

Lee said Thursday that the law is needed because the federal government isn't enforcing laws prohibiting the hiring of non-eligible employees.