a few key points from researchdone by the Center for Immigration Studies
http://www.cis.org/articles/2004/fiscal.pdf
The high cost of cheap illegal labor-
This study is one of the first to estimate the total impact of illegal immigration on the
federal budget. Most previous studies have focused on the state and local level and have
examined only costs or tax payments, but not both. Based on Census Bureau data, this
study finds that, when all taxes paid (direct and indirect) and all costs are considered,
illegal households created a net fiscal deficit at the federal level of more than $10 billion in
2002. We also estimate that, if there was an amnesty for illegal aliens, the net fiscal deficit
would grow to nearly $29 billion.
Among the findings:
? Households headed by illegal aliens imposed more than $26.3 billion in costs on the
federal government in 2002 and paid only $16 billion in taxes, creating a net fiscal
deficit of almost $10.4 billion, or $2,700 per illegal household.
? Among the largest costs are Medicaid ($2.5 billion); treatment for the uninsured ($2.2
billion); food assistance programs such as food stamps, WIC, and free school lunches
($1.9 billion); the federal prison and court systems ($1.6 billion); and federal aid to
schools ($1.4 billion).
? With nearly two-thirds of illegal aliens lacking a high school degree, 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 heavy use of most social services.
? On average, the costs that illegal households impose on federal coffers are less than half
that of other households, but their tax payments are only one-fourth that of other
households.
? Many of the costs associated with illegals are due to their American-born children, who
are awarded U.S. citizenship at birth. Thus, greater efforts at barring illegals from
federal programs will not reduce costs because their citizen children can continue to
access them.
? If illegal aliens were given amnesty and began to pay taxes and use services like households
headed by legal immigrants with the same education levels, the estimated annual
net fiscal deficit would increase from $2,700 per household to nearly $7,700, for a
total net cost of $29 billion.
? Costs increase dramatically because unskilled immigrants with legal status ? what
most illegal aliens would become ? can access government programs, but still tend to
make very modest tax payments.
? Although legalization would increase average tax payments by 77 percent, average costs
would rise by 118 percent.
? The fact that legal immigrants with few years of schooling are a large fiscal drain does
not mean that legal immigrants overall are a net drain ? many legal immigrants are
highly skilled.
? The vast majority of illegals hold jobs. Thus the fiscal deficit they create for the federal
government is not the result of an unwillingness to work.
Center for Immigration Studies
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? The results of this study are consistent with a 1997 study by the National Research
Council, which also found that immigrants? education level is a key determinant of
their fiscal impact.