State Treasurer Sarah Steelman, a Republican running for governor, says she plans to appear before a state Senate committee Wednesday and “present an analysis and testimony…that illegal workers are likely costing Missouri between $26 and $49 million every year.”

She will present her findings during a hearing of various pieces of legislation aimed at cracking down on illegal immigration,” a release from her office said.

Aside from any policy aims, Steelman’s political angle would be to stake out a strong position against illegal immigration — a popular position with the Republican base in Missouri, but not so popular with some of the GOP-leaning corporate interests.

Steelman also is likely intending to put some pressure on her chief rival for governor, U.S. Rep. Kenny Hulshof, R-Columbia, who is seen as having a friendlier relationship with some of those corporate interests.

“Steelman plans to testify in support of Senate Bill 858, which would create penalties for employers who knowingly employ illegal or undocumented workers. But, the focus of her testimony will be on the amount of money that the practice of hiring illegals is costing the state.”

Steelman says her analysis is based on an assessment from the Pew Hispanic Center that estimates that Missouri in 2005 had between 35,000 and 65,000 illegal workers. She then is multiplying “an annual average wage of $25,000″ to reach an assessment “that total revenue lost to the state and federal government combined is between $243,613,125 and $449,499,375.

“The hiring of illegal workers not only costs Missourians jobs, it cheats Missouri taxpayers at the same time,” said Steelman in a statement. “It is time that we put a stop to it.”