FREMONT: Voters in an eastern Nebraskan city have approved a ban on hiring or renting property to illegal immigrants, the latest proposal in a series of immigration regulations taken up around the country.

About 57 per cent of voters in Fremont supported the proposal, according to unofficial results. Election workers said 3906 voted in favour, with 2908 against the measure on a turnout of 45.7 per cent.

The measure is likely to face a long and costly court battle. The American Civil Liberties Union has said it will try to block it before it goes into effect.

The town of about 25,000 people has seen its Hispanic population grow in the past 20 years, largely due to the jobs available at the nearby Fremont Beef and Hormel meat-packing plants. The city also enjoys the low Nebraska unemployment rate of 4.9 per cent.

Nonetheless, residents worry that jobs are going to illegal immigrants, who they fear could drain local resources.