The Budgetary and Economic Costs of Addressing Unauthorized Immigration: Alternative Strategies

By Ben GitisLaura Collins

March 6, 2015

“The federal government would have to spend roughly $400 billion to $600 billion to address the 11.2 million undocumented immigrants and prevent future unlawful entry into the United States…In turn, this would shrink the labor force by 11 million workers and reduce real GDP by $1.6 trillion.”

Pew Research Center Hispanic Trends

Frequently Requested Statistics on Immigration

Visit the Migration Policy Institute for this helpful report:

In 2010 there were nearly 40 million persons living in the U.S. who were foreign born. Here is what the Census Bureau reports about this population:

Statistical Portrait of Hispanic Population

Population estimates in the 2011 ACS are based on the latest information from the 2010 Decennial Census; the 2005 to 2009 ACS estimates are based on the latest information available for those surveys—updates of the 2000 Decennial Census.

Hispanic voting patterns 2012 election

In 2012, Hispanics cast 10 percent of votes in the presidential election. Here is what the Pew Hispanic Center reports on Hispanic political activity in 2012:

Education Attainment

Hispanic high school graduates are more likely to continue their education than non-Hispanic whites, reversing decades of lower education attainment by Hispanics. Read more about the increasing education levels among the Hispanic population:

Crime

Fear of increased crime in heavily immigrant communities prompts much worry among opponents of immigration reform, but does the evidence bear out these concerns? Read more from two scholars who have analyzed the data:

Polling Data: