In an extensive research analysis of money dispersed to illegal immigrants in the United States, it has been found that tax payers money is accounted for about $100 billion dollars in funding for illegal immigrants. According to FAIR, “The $113 billion in outlays for services and benefits to illegal aliens and their families represents an average cost to native-headed households of $1,117 a year. Because the burdens of illegal immigration are not evenly distributed, the costs are much higher in states with large alien population” (Fair, 2010). This is far too much money to just be giving it away to people who are in the States illegally. I know I personally, would rather invest it in my college education, an IRA, social security, or pay off bills we have accumulating. So, the amount of money being spent on illegal immigrants in the United States is a huge expense to the American citizens. These monies are being paid out of the taxes paid by the hard working citizens. Every year, billions of dollars are paid out for illegal immigrants in hospitals, public schools, food assistance programs, federal prison, court cost, and deportation. It is appalling to see the amount of help that illegal immigrants receive being “non-citizens.” This money could be put into unemployment, social security, health care, schools, or any other system that seems to be failing us. In fact, due to illegal immigrants attending public schools, more and more money has to be paid not only for them to attend, but for their meals as well. “Education for the children of illegal aliens represents the single largest public expenditure at an annual cost of $52 billion. Nearly all of that cost is absorbed by state and local governments” (FAIR, 2005... ... middle of paper ... ...cquire an adequate education needed to prosper. References CIS. (2004, August). The High Cost of Cheap Labor: Illegal Immigration and the Federal Budget. Retrieved May 15, 2011, from Center for Immigration Studies: http://cis.org/atricles/2004/fiscalexec.html Cohen, R. (2011, March 25). Illegal Immigration, A Call to Reality. Retrieved May 15, 2011, from fromthetenchesworldreport.com: http://fromthetrenchesworldreport.com/illegal-immigration-a-call-to-reality/2993 Davidson, A. (2006, March 30). Q&A: Illegal Immigrants and the U.S. Economy. Retrieved May 15, 2011, from NPR: http://www.npr.org/templates/story.php?storyId=5312900 Fair. (2005, June). Breaking the Piggy Bank: How illegal immigration is Sending Schools into the Red. Retrived May 15, 2011, from FAIR: http://www.fairus.org/site/News2?page=NewsArticle&id=23198&security=1601&news_iv_ctrl=1741
... 2002. Mexican immigrants use about $250 million in social services such as Medicaid and food stamps and another $31 million in uncompensated health care, that leaves a profit of $319 million” (218). But should we still allow people to put their lives at risk?
The economy is a huge debate when it comes to immigration. Many discrepancies that arise when the topic is brought up is that immigrants mooch off The United States taxpayers, but the numbers show that
Some viewpoints assert that if a person is in the United States illegally, he should have no rights and no benefits. Proponents justify this position by blaming illegal immigration for economic hardships, such as increasing health care costs, for the American people. This attitude is simply inaccurate. Many undocumented immigrants do contribute to the economies of the federal, state and local governments through taxes and can stimulate job growth. However, the cost of providing healthcare impacts federal, state, and local governments differently.
The United States of America has the largest foreign-born population in the world. With nearly thirteen percent of the total population being foreign-born, one may find it hard to imagine an immigrant-free country (U.S. Bureau of the Census). Immigration has been an integral part of the United States’ overall success and the country’s economy since it was established and without it, would have never been founded at all. Although there are some negative issues associated with immigration and many native-born Americans believe to be more of a problem than a solution, overall it actually has a positive effect. Immigrants in America, among other things, fill jobs where native-born Americans may not want to work or cannot work, they contribute to Social Services and Medicaid through taxes and they help provide the backbone of America, especially by working jobs that natives may have not even considered.
If economists took one thing away from the Great Depression, it should be that losing billions of dollars in a short amount of time causes colossal problems. Everyday in America that is precisely what continues to happen. One day the country will pay for it, but until then, America continues to limp along. The statistics of how much America actually spends could cause even Bill Gates to take a step back. In an article in The Atlanta Journal and Constitution, the situation is summed up quite horrifyingly: “The U.S. Census Bureau just released 2008 figures showing the national average total per-pupil funding from all revenue sources was $12,028” (Izumi). The article goes on to calculate that “if one multiplies $12,028 by the roughly 3.7 million students [almost all living in Texas and California] with illegal-immigrant parents, then one gets a national total funding cost of $44.5...
Probably the largest contribution that immigrants given America’s economy - whether they are illegal or legal - is that they spend the money that they earn and put it back into the economy (Davidson). According to Costa, Cooper, and Shierholz, “immigrants’ share of total output was about 14.7 percent over 2009-2011.” This is true even though they make up 13 percent of the total U.S. population, because a majority of immigrants are working age, compared to the diverse ages of the general U.S. population (Costa, Cooper, Shierholz). Another point that is brought up in “An Immigration Stimulus: The Economic Benefits of a Legalization Program” is that if the U.S. legalizes more “illegal” immigrants, they are then able to earn more. When Immigrants are able to earn more, they can then pay more in taxes, and their ability to spend more money to put it back in the economy grows (“An Immigration Stimulus: The Economic Benefits of a Legalization Program”). And on the point of Social Security, illegal immigrants have contributed $15 million a year to the Social Security Trust fund. And while they are contributing such a large amount to Social Security, very few of them are able to get the benefits from it (Davidson). So as a group, they are giving much more into the Social Security system than they are taking out. After taking into account all of
The United States cannot afford to lose the economic gains that come from immigrant labor. The economy would be suffering a greater loss if it weren’t for immigrants and their labor contributions, especially during the 2008 U.S. recession. The U.S. economy would most likely worsen if it weren’t for the strong labor force immigrants have provided this country. Despite the mostly negative views native-born Americans have towards immigrants and the economy, their strong representation in the labor forces continues today. Immigrants aren’t taking “American” jobs, they are taking the jobs that Americans don’t want (Delener & Ventilato, 2008). Immigrants contribute to various aspects of the economy, including brining valuable skills to their jobs, contributing to the cost of living through taxes, and the lacked use of welfare, healthcare, and social security when compared to native-born Americans, showing that the United States cannot afford to lose the contribution immigrants bring into the economy.
The United States of America, being a country founded by immigrants, is known all over the world as the land of great opportunities. People from all walks of life travelled across the globe, taking a chance to find a better life for them and their family. Over the years, the population of immigrants has grown immensely, resulting in the currently controversial issue of illegal immigration. Illegal immigrants are the people who have overstayed the time granted on their US, visa or those who have broken the federal law by crossing the border illegally. Matt O’Brien stated in his article “The government thinks that 10.8 million illegal immigrants lived in the country in January 2009, down from a peak of nearly 12 million in 2007.”(Para, 2) While some argue that illegal immigrants burden the United States of America and its economy, others believe that they have become essential and are an important part of the US, economy.
Ngai, Mae M. 2004 “Impossible Subjects: Illegal Aliens and the Making of Modern America” Publisher: Princeton University Press.
Ruark, Eric A., and Matthew Graham. "Immigration Is Increasing Poverty in the United States." Poverty. Ed. Roman Espejo. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2012. Opposing Viewpoints. Rpt. from "Immigration, Poverty and Low-Wage Earners: The Harmful Effect of Unskilled Immigrants on American Workers." FairUS.org. 2011. 3-17. Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 21 Apr. 2014.
Gomez, Alan. “Illegal immigration levels off in ’10.” USA Today n.d. (02 February 2011): 02a. Academic Research Complete. Web. 25 March 2011.
Thompson, Art. “Illegal Immigration Hurts the Economy.” Opposing Viewpoints: Immigration. Eds. David M. Haugen, Susan Musser and Kacy Lovelace. Farmington Hills, MI: Greenhaven Press, 2009. 30-35. Print.
...ol.” Debates on Immigration. Ed Judith Gans, Elaine M. Repogle, and Daniel J. Tichenor. Thousand Oaks, CA SAGE Reference, 2012: 144. Gale Virtual Library. Web. 22 Apr, 2014.
Lynch, R., & Oakford, P. (2013, March 30). The Economic Effects of Granting Legal Status and Citizenship to Undocumented Immigrants. American Progress. Retrieved July 2, 2014, from http://americanprogress.org/issues/immigration/report/2013/03/20/57351/the-economic-effects-of-granting-legal-status-and-citizenship-to-undocumented-immigrants/
Nadadur, Ramanujan. "Illegal Immigration: A Positive Economic Contribution to the United States." Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies 35.6 (2009): 1037-052. Print.