Posted on 08/08/2005 8:20:26 PM PDT by Happy2BMe
Illegal Immigration Costs Florida $4.3 Billion a Year, Report Says
By Melanie Hunter
CNSNews.com Senior Editor
August 08, 2005
(CNSNews.com) - A report by an immigration reform group shows that illegal immigration costs the state of Florida at least $4.3 billion a year in health care, education and incarceration costs.
The Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) predicts the state's costs of illegal immigration will increase to nearly $8 billion a year within 10 years unless it is controlled.
"Average Floridians are being asked to pay dearly for the failure of the federal government to control illegal immigration, and for a small number of business interests in the state addicted to low-wage illegal alien labor," said Dan Stein, president of FAIR, in a statement.
"The $4.3 billion being spent on illegal immigrants and their families means those resources are not available to improve and upgrade Florida's woefully overcrowded schools and overburdened public hospitals," said Stein.
"Nor are those funds available for urgent infrastructure repairs needed as a result of the succession of devastating hurricanes that ravaged the state in the last several years," Stein added.
FAIR used Census and other data to estimate the size of Florida's illegal immigrant population to be 630,000, which is larger than the populations of Tampa and St. Petersburg combined.
The costs to Floridians, according to the report, is more than $4 billion a year in providing public education to the children of illegal immigrants, about $165 million a year in non-reimbursed costs for health care, and about $155 million a year to jail illegal aliens in county and state correctional facilities.
"In reality, low-wage illegal alien labor is prohibitively expensive, when the costs of vital public services are factored into the equation," Stein saidd. "Average Floridians are being forced to subsidize illegal immigration and the burden will increase rapidly unless federal, state and local governments begin working together to stem the massive influx."
I am in Memphis, TN, no where near the border and half the signs in the building are in Spanish. Yea, no problem. Do you see spiders in your dream world?
Since I am NOT bilingual, I will probably never get a promotion.
No, I'm just pointing out the fallacies of your arguments. As all your arguments continue to fall, and you continue to maintain your position, your internal feelings will be of your own creation.
Protect our borders and coastlines from all foreign invaders!
Be Ever Vigilant!
Minutemen Patriots ~ Bump!
In many cases, yes.
What part of ILLEGAL do YOU not understand?
" JIM GILCHRIST FOR CONGRESS "
http://www.jimgilchrist.com/
If there is enough support from fellow citizen-patriots like you, I
am seriously considering a Congressional challenge to the political
establishment. Given the wholesale failure of our current leadership
to defend American territory at our borders, and to protect our
system of ordered liberty from what can only be described as an
epidemic of lawlessness, I feel a run for federal office may be the
best thing I can do for our national security and national
sovereignty.
Just got this report via GOPUSA email alert...
At least someone claiming membership in the GOP GETS IT!!!
It's time to jail anyone using illegal alien labor
imo
Then why aren't they?
What are they doing now, just sitting around the house all day watching TV or playing video games? Even if the job only pays $6.00 an hour, isn't it better to spend the day driving a forklift instead of watching I Love Lucy reruns?
What excuse do they give their parents, wives, girlfriends or children for refusing to apply for a job where you work?
You are obviously a troll. Maybe they aren't working because the MEXICANS got the jobs instead. No one said that AMERICANS won't work. You're starting to sound like Mexican Presidente FOX.
Nope. Doesn't happen. Given the choice between a legal and illegal employee, all other things equal, an employer will always hire the legal one.
Why you ask? (having never been an employer you wouldn't otherwise know).
First: It costs money to train people. You can't waste money training transients or people who may be deported at any time. You look for people who will be with you many years.
Second: it is illegal to hire illegals. Even if an employer has no personal qualms against violating the law, he has to fear something happening that causes him to be exposed to the immigration officials or general public.
Three: Insurance and bonding companies often won't deal with companies that hire illegals. Other companies won't do business with companies that aren't bonded and insured. Don't even think ISO.
Four: Liability. An illegal employee accidentally injures another employee or third person. You don't have a prayer before a jury.
Fifth: Language. Employees who speak English are worth more than those who don't. At minimum they can answer the phone.
Sixth: Illegals tend not to have drivers licenses and thus cannot be used in situations when an employee is needed to drive a company vehicle.
Seventh: Dependability. An employer has to have people whom he can depend upon to be at work everyday and on time. Illegals are subject the vagaries of someone dependent upon others for transportation.
Eight: Vacations. Illegals from Mexico like to go back home at Christmas and other special occassions. Sometimes they have difficulty getting back on time.
Ninth: IRS. Illegals sometimes have fake social security numbers that result in your business coming the the attention of the IRS and triggering an audit, which is a very expensive and time consuming event.
I could probably think of a few more reason why employers only hire illegals as a last resort, but those should be enough reasons for you to realize that any citizen who claims that he is not good enough to compete with illegal laborers must really be bad.
But other things are seldom equal. For one, Illegals are willing to work for a fraction of what citizens and legal aliens are willing to work for. The overwhelming consensus in the peer-reviewed economic literature is that illegals aliens drive down wages and increase unemployment of low skill Americans.
You need to do some homework.
I've never heard on any of these threads or any reports or any personal sources of any illegals working for less than minimum wage.
In fact on a thread a couple days ago about day laborers, a number of FReepers from different parts of the country joined in to say that the minimum that illegals would agree to work for is $10 per hour.
In the case under discussion in this thread, the regional distribution center in Memphis is part of a very large national corporation. They aren't payimg less than minimum wage.
Now, since you think you have done your homework, you tell me what all these Americans who won't work at this distribution center are doing all day? Do you think they are playing their Game Boys, or sitting in bars drinking, or smoking crack, or floating in daddy's pool, or reading Harry Potter books? If they refuse to drive forklifts at the wage major corporations pay, please tell us what they are doing?
You place a high value on annectodal evidence, I see. Ever heard of sweatshops? There are large numbers in LA and New York and other big cities with large illegal alien populations, mostly employing illegals at below minimum wages. Google it up.
In fact on a thread a couple days ago about day laborers, a number of FReepers from different parts of the country joined in to say that the minimum that illegals would agree to work for is $10 per hour.
So? You try living on $10 a day. Maybe some teenagers might take such a job, but very few citizens or legal aliens are going to be willing to do it.
Now, since you think you have done your homework, you tell me what all these Americans who won't work at this distribution center are doing all day?
Looking for better paying jobs, mostly. Illegal alien presence on the labor market increases lengthens the duration of unemployment spells, and eventually lowers the final wage that the worker ends up getting.
Another anti-American remark by bayourod. You are one of the most despicable human beings that I've ever had the displeasure to come across. Your "American workers are terrible, illegal alien workers are wonderful" rhetoric reflects what your true priorities are. You would sell out your own country if it meant extra dollars in your pocket or extra dollars on your company's bottom line.
So, how many of your precious illegal alien lawbreaker buddies did you hug today?
Bussing tables, washing dishes, picking grapes, digging ditches, cleaning houses and the other kinds of jobs many illegls take don't require much training. Plus, some illegals actually have skills. There is a construction industry in Mexico, you know.
Second: it is illegal to hire illegals.
The law is poorly enforced and has no teeth. The sanctions against offenders are a joke. It's very easy to get away with hiring illegals. You're only likely to get caught if you're running for office or trying to get a Senate confirmation.
Three: Insurance and bonding companies often won't deal with companies that hire illegals.
And there are a lot of industries that don't require extensive insurance or bonding. Besides, I doubt the veracity of your statement. Are you telling me that the vast majority of restaurants and hotels in NYC, or example, who hire illegals can't get insurance?
Other companies won't do business with companies that aren't bonded and insured. Don't even think ISO.
Depends on what industry you're in.
Four: Liability. An illegal employee accidentally injures another employee or third person. You don't have a prayer before a jury.
Very few cases go before a jury. Workers comp typically pays off the injured worker. Customer? I suppose, but illegals, especially those who can't speak English, seldom interact with customers.
Fifth: Language. Employees who speak English are worth more than those who don't. At minimum they can answer the phone.
Doesn't matter if you have a foreman who can speak Spanish.
Sixth: Illegals tend not to have drivers licenses and thus cannot be used in situations when an employee is needed to drive a company vehicle.
When does a maid ever need to drive a company vehicle? A grape picker?A bus boy?
Seventh: Dependability. An employer has to have people whom he can depend upon to be at work everyday and on time. Illegals are subject the vagaries of someone dependent upon others for transportation.
Ever heard of public transportation?
Eight: Vacations. Illegals from Mexico like to go back home at Christmas and other special occassions. Sometimes they have difficulty getting back on time.
BS. They don't go back because they know they'll have trouble getting back. You don't give your life savings to a cayote to muggle you accross the border and risk another crossing by going back. Use your brain.
Ninth: IRS. Illegals sometimes have fake social security numbers that result in your business coming the the attention of the IRS and triggering an audit, which is a very expensive and time consuming event.
Bwahahahahah! You can't be serious. You don't need a fake social security number to file a tax return with the IRS. Ever heard of a taxpayer ID number?
So long as the illegal is filing his return, the IRS doesn't give a rat's a$$.
Can you name a single instance in which the IRS initiated an audit because they suspected some employees were illegal?
Taking the public benefits citizens refuse to take.
Geez bayourod, just how did the USA become so great before massive illegal immigration?
Any man who refuses to work for $20,000 per year at any job, but instead will live off welfare, or his parents or his wife, while he does nothing all day, is not the type man who will ever be able to hold any job at any wage for any length of time.
They probably know that they will never be promoted or praised for their work or ever have pride in anything they do. They are called hard core unemployables, and scapegoating Hispanic immigrants is their emotional crutch.
People like that who think the government can force employers to hire them with their sorry attitudes are the reason the rust belt states are losing jobs to the sunbelt states.
Any person in America who really wants a job can find one making minimum wage or better, even if they have to do something demeaning such as wash dishes. This isn't a communist state where everyone is guaranteed a salary regardless of their productivity.
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