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State Legislators Continue to Throw Restrictive Immigration Measures Overboard
Throughout the months-long debate over restrictive immigration measures, many state lawmakers have considered the fiscal and political impacts and decided to throw them overboard. This week was no different as opposition to costly enforcement legislation continued. A tough immigration bill was likely killed in Kansas this week after the House refused to move the bill […]
Read MoreA Rising Tide or a Shrinking Pie
Washington, D.C. – As Arizona approaches the one-year anniversary of the passage of SB 1070, the Immigration Policy Center and Center for American Progress release a new report, A Rising Tide or a Shrinking Pie: The Economic Impact of Legalization Versus Deportation in Arizona, by Raúl Hinojosa-Ojeda and Marshall Fitz, which examines two very different […]
Read MoreA Rising Tide or a Shrinking Pie
Our national debate over urgently needed immigration reform is now careening through our state legislatures, city halls, and town councils due to political gridlock at the federal level. And nowhere is that debate more contentious than in Arizona, where in April of last year the state’s legislature sought to rid the state of undocumented immigrants with passage of S.B. 1070. The law is specifically designed to trigger a mass exodus of undocumented immigrants from the state by making “attrition through enforcement the public policy of all state and local government agencies in Arizona.”
The economic analysis in this report shows the S.B. 1070 approach would have devastating economic consequences if its goals were accomplished. When undocumented workers are taken out of the economy, the jobs they support through their labor, consumption, and tax payments disappear as well. Particularly during a time of profound economic uncertainty, the type of economic dislocation envisioned by S.B. 1070-type policies runs directly counter to the interests of our nation as we continue to struggle to distance ourselves from the ravages of the Great Recession.
New “E-Verify Self Check” Pilot Program is Not a Cure-All
BY TYLER MORAN, NATIONAL IMMIGRATION LAW CENTER E-Verify has a problem: Washington politicians want to force American employers to use the electronic employment verification system, but the system is still not ready for prime time. On Monday, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) took a step toward remedying the database error rates by announcing E-Verify […]
Read MoreImmigrant Entrepreneurs May Speed Up Our Economic Recovery
As America’s economic recovery continues to be a national priority, leaders on both sides of the aisle are finally beginning to look at reforming our nation’s immigration system as a strategy for promoting job creating and growth. President Obama commented in his State of the Union Address that instead of expelling immigrants, we should make […]
Read MoreImmigrant Entrepreneurs: Starting American Companies and Creating American Jobs
New businesses are the single best creators of new jobs, and – even with current visa impediments – immigrants are among the leading drivers in creating new businesses: In 2010, immigrants were more than twice as likely to start businesses each month as natives. From 1995 to 2005, immigrants helped found 25 percent of all […]
Read MoreImmigrant Entrepreneurs: Starting American Companies and Creating American Jobs
New businesses are the single best creators of new jobs, and – even with current visa impediments – immigrants are among the leading drivers in creating new businesses: In 2010, immigrants were more than twice as likely to start businesses each month as natives. From 1995 to 2005, immigrants helped found 25 percent of all […]
Read MoreIs Arizona’s Rejection of Anti-Immigrant Measures a Bellwether for Other States?
SB 1070 author, state Sen. Russell Pearce, also authored the latest string of anti-immigrant measures which were rejected last week . Photo by Gage Skidmore. Last week, Arizona’s business community worked with state Senators to kill an omnibus package of anti-immigrant bills—bills which included provisions to limit citizenship to the U.S. born children of immigrants […]
Read MoreBusinesses Warn State Lawmakers That Immigration Legislation Will Break the Bank
As many state legislative sessions come to a close, lawmakers are giving serious thought about proceeding with restrictive immigration legislation. Legislators in some states (Colorado, Iowa, Kentucky, Nebraska, New Hampshire, South Dakota, Virginia, Wyoming, and most recently, Arizona) have canned restrictive enforcement legislation due to prohibitive costs and push back from business and community groups […]
Read MoreForeign-Born to Help Fill Gap in U.S. Doctors
While Americans are justifiably worried about high unemployment levels and the “jobless recovery,” Reps. Lamar Smith, Steve King, and Elton Gallegly are attempting to use America’s concerns as an opportunity to pass more restrictive immigration policies. In fact, immigration restrictionists across the country have taken advantage of the poor economy to push their anti-immigrant agenda. […]
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