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Posted on 04/04/2006 6:51:20 PM PDT by cowboy_code
Center for Immigration Studies WASHINGTON (August 25, 2004)
A new study from the Center for Immigration Studies is one of the first to estimate the impact of illegal immigration on the federal budget. Based on Census Bureau data, the study estimates that households headed by illegal aliens used $10 billion more in government services than they paid in taxes in 2002. These figures are only for the federal government; costs at the state and local level are also likely to be significant. The study also finds that if illegals were given amnesty, the fiscal deficit at the federal level would grow to nearly $29 billion.
Among the findings:
· Illegal alien households are estimated to use $2,700 a year more in services than they pay in taxes, creating a total fiscal burden of nearly $10.4 billion on the federal budget in 2002.
· Among the largest federal costs: Medicaid ($2.5 billion); treatment for the uninsured ($2.2 billion); food assistance programs ($1.9 billion); the federal prison and court systems ($1.6 billion); and federal aid to schools ($1.4 billion).
· If illegal aliens were legalized and began to pay taxes and use services like legal immigrants with the same education levels, the estimated annual fiscal deficit at the federal level would increase from $2,700 per household to nearly $7,700, for a total federal deficit of $29 billion.
· With nearly two-third of illegals lacking a high school diploma, the primary reason they create a fiscal deficit is their low education levels and resulting low incomes and tax payments — not their legal status or their unwillingness to work.
· Amnesty increases costs because illegals would still be largely unskilled, and thus their tax payments would continue to be very modest, but once legalized they would be able to access many more government services.
· The fact that legal immigrants with little schooling are a fiscal drain on federal coffers does not mean that legal immigrants overall are a drain. Many legal immigrants are highly skilled.
· Because many of the costs are due to their U.S.-born children, who are awarded U.S. citizenship at birth, barring illegals themselves from federal programs will not significantly reduce costs.
· Although they create a net drain on the federal government, the average illegal household pays more than $4,200 a year in federal taxes, for a total of nearly $16 billion.
· However, they impose annual costs of more than $26.3 billion, or about $6,950 per illegal household.
· About 43 percent, or $7 billion, of the federal taxes illegals pay go to Social Security and Medicare.
· Employers do not see the costs associated with less-educated immigrant workers because the costs are spread out among all taxpayers.
Why Legalization Is So Costly. Costs rise unavoidably because amnesty will not change the low education levels of illegal aliens or the fact that the American economy offers such workers very limited opportunities, regardless of legal status. The vast majority of illegal aliens will continue to have very low incomes, and make very modest tax payments. However, legal status would allow them to use many more programs. We know that costs would rise dramatically because legal immigrants with the same levels of education make extensive use of public services. Thus, even though we estimate that average tax payments would rise by 77 percent, we also find that costs would rise 117 percent. To understand why this happens, it is helpful to consider a program like the Earned Income Tax Credit, which pays cash to low-income workers. Illegals currently account for only 1.5 percent of the program’s total costs, but if they were legalized their use of the program would grow tenfold because with legal status they would no longer need stolen or bogus Social Security numbers to get the credit. This dramatic rise in costs is not due to laziness on the part of immigrants. In fact, only those who work receive the EITC. The dramatic rise in costs simply reflects the low educational attainment of illegals and their resulting low incomes.
If Illegals Stay, So Will the Costs. To the extent that policy makers have considered the fiscal costs of illegal immigration, they have generally tried to reduce the costs while allowing illegals to remain. But this strategy has not been effective because the average illegal already receives less than half as much in services from the federal government as do other households. Moreover, many of the costs are due to their U.S.-born children, who are awarded American citizenship at birth under current law. Other programs are simply too politically sensitive to cut, such as the Women, Infants and Children nutrition program. And others costs are unavoidable, such as incarcerating illegals who have been convicted of crimes. Conversely, enforcing immigration laws is both popular with voters and administratively more feasible. There are really only two options: either we begin to enforce the law, significantly reducing the number of illegals in the country, or we accept the costs created by the presence of a large pool of unskilled workers.
Results Similar to Other Studies. A 1997 report by the National Research Council (NRC) on the fiscal impact of immigrants concluded that education levels and resulting income are the primary determinants of tax payments and service use, which is also a central finding of this report. The results of this study closely match the findings of a 1998 Urban Institute study. Our estimated average tax payment for illegal households in New York State is almost identical to that of the Urban Institute, when adjusted for inflation. The results of this study are also buttressed by an analysis of illegal alien tax returns done by the Inspector General’s Office of the Department of Treasury in 2004, which found that about half had no federal income tax liability, very similar to our findings of 45 percent.
The panel discussion is open to the public. For more information, contact Steven Camarota.
tonk-a ping thanks
Mexico is Rich- Mexican wealthy play American taxpayers for suckers
Good thread for any that missed it. It should really make you mad.
Every dollar spent in U.S. taxes for social services for illegal aliens frees up additional cash to be sent south as part of the annual remittances which provided $20 billion in 2005. According to the CNN news show Lou Dobbs Tonight (3/21/05), "Remittances, as they're called, are expected to become Mexico's primary source of income this year, surpassing the amount of money that Mexico makes on oil exports for the first time ever."
Well, that's like throwing gas on the fire. lol
Isn't it just a hoot when the senators assure us that the illegals will have to pay a fine and pay back taxes? No doubt way too many of them will qualify for the earned income credit.
With conservativedude's permission, I'll borrow and amend his post from another thread.
I'll just get this out so that the GWB loyalists don't have to:
- if you oppose GWB, you are a RINO using DU and DNC talking points
- Reagan was no good on amnesty, either, and he was a conservative, so amnesty must be conservative
- Amnesty is better than having illegals go further 'underground'
Now...if the Bush loyalists have better arguments than those to SUBSTANTIVELY deal with this and not just bitch and moan at the author and those who agree with them, then there are a lot of us here who are all ears.
(While we're at it, I wonder if the accounting gurus who gave us the numbers for the prescription drugs benefit and the Social Security numbers for Mexican laborers factored in the amnestied illegals who will now officially become part of the welfare state?)
BTTT
This is an important read and sort of defeats the entire "the cost of lettuce will increase" crowd.
Thanks for the ping.
Reading all the stuff about the negative impact the illegals have had on us all it getting pretty depressing, isn't it?
Support our Minutemen Patriots!
Be Ever Vigilant!
This country is hardly what the Founding Fathers envisioned. They warned us of so much of this and yet here we are anyway. Socialism, removing God from the public forum, dumbing down in our public schools, rewriting history, the ol' slippery slope of our values, political correctness killing any ideas and dialog, the Constitution interpretted completely out of context... And I wish I could do more but I'm back in school because taxes and regulations makes businesses struggle to stay alive so our plant closed down and work shipped to Mexico. Yet, my taxes I STILL have to pay is supporting these ILLIGAL ALIENS and the government wants us to do MORE for them??! BULLSHIP! Send their a$$es back home, get that friggin' Wall built, and enforce our current laws, and don't expect us to pay for any more than that!
I am so fed to the teeth of it all.
Not only that, but we the taxpayer assume that cost:
Employers do not see the costs associated with less-educated immigrant workers because the costs are spread out among all taxpayers.
And if they were legalized, what would happen?
· If illegal aliens were legalized and began to pay taxes and use services like legal immigrants with the same education levels, the estimated annual fiscal deficit at the federal level would increase from $2,700 per household to nearly $7,700, for a total federal deficit of $29 billion.
Yep, Bush wants the American taxpayer to subsidize those businesses who benefit from cheap illegal labor.
I'd rather pay more for lettuce.
click for more
(Please FReepmail if you want on, or off, this list. I certainly have no desire to increase anyone’s stress-level. Thanks!!!)
You're not going to get a "Holiday" card from the White House this year.
Watch the news. The politicians are very nervous about the illegal issue. Not the 'rats, the people that are SUPPOSED to be on our side.
The talk is all about people who usually vote for republicans voting for third-party people in the next election or staying home.
Our vote is the only weapon we have against them and they know it.
After we vote they do their business as usual until the next election cycle. But right now they are sweating.
Love your letter!
Issues
The Mexican Matricula Consular ID card is an ID card issued to Mexican foreign nationals in the United States. The matricula consular is useful in the United States only for illegal aliens, because legal immigrants by definition have legal U.S. government-issued documents.
After 9/11, the Mexican Government realized that they could not gain another U.S. amnesty for illegal aliens. Instead, they launched a lobbying campaign to gain acceptance of the ID at state and local levels and from U.S. banks.
U.S. Congressman Tom Tancredo said, "The only people who benefit from having such an ID are those who have come illegally and have broken our laws." This ID card is essentially a back door attempt at a stealth amnesty and a direct challenge to the jurisdiction of Congress over U.S. immigration policy. Roberto Rodriguez Hernandez, director of the Mexican card program was quoted as saying "It's necessary to push the need for an amnesty at all levels."
The matricula card is not a secure document (the Matricula Cards on this page are of American citizens). Mexico does not authenticate documents used to obtain the ID against computerized data files in Mexico. No major bank in Mexico accepts the card to open an account and the cards are recognized as IDs in only 10 of Mexico's 32 states and districts.
Now, Guatemala, Honduras, Poland, Peru and El Salvador, aware of Mexico's success, have begun or are considering issuing cards of their own.
City liability insurance companies almost certainly won't cover liability associated with accepting such a card, since it is a violation of Federal law to accept the card. So if a city accepts the card and a citizen is injured by an illegal alien, the citizen could likely sue individual city council members for their personal assets and life savings.
Specifically, a state or local government official or employee who provides any benefit or service to such a presenter possesses the criminal intent (mens rea) necessary for a felony indictment under Section 274 of the Immigration and Nationality Act, which provides criminal penalties for any act that "encourages or induces an alien to come to, enter, or reside in the United States, knowing or in reckless disregard of the fact that such coming to, entry, or residence is or will be in violation of law."
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