Economic Impact
The Important Role of Immigrants in America’s Innovation Economy
This week, the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation weighed in on immigration reform with a hearing on the role of immigrants in America’s innovation economy. Remarks from Sens. Rockefeller (D-WV) and Thune (R-SD) noted the contributions of immigrant innovators and entrepreneurs. Immigrants in the United States were named as inventors or co-inventors on 25.6 percent of international patent applications filed from the U.S. in 2006. Furthermore, temporary workers and permanent residents made contributions to over half of the international patents filed by several large, multi-national companies. Temporary and permanent foreign-born workers represent at least 24 percent of the nation’s scientists and 47 percent of engineers with doctoral degrees. Read More
Social Security Administration Says Immigration Reform Will Increase Tax Revenue, Boost Economy
Will the immigration reform bill create millions of jobs, boost GDP, and help balance the budget? A new report by the Social Security Administration says that it will, by putting undocumented immigrants on the tax rolls and allowing them to participate fully and legally in the U.S. economy. Read More
How to Accurately Estimate the Economic Impact of the Senate Immigration Reform Bill
One of the most important questions being asked about the Senate immigration reform bill (S. 744) is how it will impact the economy. There is already a broad consensus among economic experts that immigration reform would be a net economic benefit in terms of jobs, wage levels, tax revenue, and Gross Domestic Product (GDP). As reported in Politico on May 8, for instance, a new study by the Social Security Administration estimates that “by 2024, the immigration bill will have created 3.22 million jobs, and boost GDP by 1.63 percent.” However, the most widely awaited estimate is that of the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), which will soon be “scoring” the bill in terms of its fiscal consequences. Read More
Keeping U.S. High-Skilled Temporary Worker Visa Programs Workable
When analyzing higher-skilled guest worker visa programs, such as the H-1B and L-1 programs, critics often fail to acknowledge the very different and important purposes that these programs were designed to serve, and the complicated requirements already in place to protect against abuse or exploitation. There is no denying that we can and should improve these programs and the strategies used to enforce them. However, given the well-established economic benefits of these programs, and the challenges employers face finding highly skilled workers, particularly in technical fields, it is essential that any proposed reforms not impose restrictions that may make these programs completely unworkable. Read More
Immigration Activists Take to the Streets in May Day Rallies Around the Nation
Tens of thousands of people across the country—from New York to Vermont to California and Arizona—gathered at rallies and marches yesterday to demand immigration reform. Immigrants and advocates joined with labor groups, lawmakers, and other organizations for the May Day, also known as International Worker’s Day, demonstrations in dozens of cities. And their message was clear: Congress must pass immigration reform. Read More
High-Skilled Immigration and Entrepreneurship in the Senate’s Immigration Bill
On the road to reform, the Senate’s Border Security, Economic Opportunity, and Immigration Modernization Act contains several changes and new provisions for skilled immigration and entrepreneurship. Specifically, the bill provides balanced reforms to the H-1B nonimmigrant visa for high-skilled individuals, various provisions for highly skilled individuals through permanent employment-based immigration, and a new INVEST visa for entrepreneurs. Read More
Senate Hearing Reinforces Why Congress Needs To Pass Comprehensive Immigration Reform
For more than seven hours on Monday, the Senate Judiciary Committee listened to testimony from almost two dozen people about the immigration reform bill a bipartisan group of senators introduced last week. From visas for farm workers and other foreign workers to the mandatory E-Verify system included in the bill, senators debated and questioned the witnesses about all aspects of immigration reform. Read More
Details Begin to Emerge on New Immigration Bill
Ahead of the expected release of a comprehensive immigration reform bill in the Senate this week, details were released outlining the broad strokes of the bill. The “Gang of Eight”—a bipartisan group of senators who have been working to develop the proposal—delayed a press conference that had been planned for today about the bill out of respect for the victims of the Boston Marathon bombing. The Senate group could announce the final measure tomorrow Read More
Why Are Some Still UnDACAmented?
The latest USCIS DACA numbers from March show that the agency has received roughly 470,000 applications, which means that just under half of those estimated to be eligible have applied. While the success reflected by the 470,000 figure is not to be downplayed, the new numbers beg the question: What about the other half million? Why are they still unDACAmented? Read More
Guaranteeing Access to Health Care to Immigrant Women: A Necessary and Wise Investment
In the current public debate regarding comprehensive immigration reform, the focus on immigrant access to health benefits has been almost exclusively limited to cost (which is undeniably an important aspect) and has rarely addressed the social gains that result from investing in a healthy population. For the most part, the health of immigrant women has been left out of the discussion, which is, in many aspects, problematic. Read More
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