The push for mandatory national verification that all workers be Americans or legal immigrants won a big boost Thursday when the acting director of the Social Security Administration called on Congress to pass “E-Verify,” the voluntary employment identification system.

At a House hearing addressing Social Security fraud, Nancy Berryhill, the Obama-era acting Social Security commissioner, said that U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services' E-Verify system would limit fraud and the theft of Social Security numbers by illegals.

“The administration also encourages Congress to pass legislation with a requirement that employers use DHS's E-Verify system,” said Berryhill in her testimony.

“Mandatory use of E-Verify by employers would help reduce the incidence of fraudulent use of SSNs. We would be happy to work with you as you contemplate that or similar legislation,” she added.

There are immigration reform bills before Congress that include E-Verify, which has also been endorsed by President Trump but that is only in effect in a handful of states.

“Any solution must be a durable and comprehensive one in order to reduce and ultimately prevent identity theft throughout public and private industry,” Berryhill said.

Her endorsement indicates a shift from what Trump officials have described as a private push back on assisting the administration and immigration authorities on enforcement measures.

“Despite the SSA being potentially hugely helpful in cutting off the illegal-aliens jobs-magnet, they’ve been absolutely unwilling to cooperate,” said one official.

According to federal reports, over 3.1 million illegal immigrants have been allowed to work on basis of holding fraudulent Social Security numbers.