Immigration Issues

Alexis de Tocqueville Institution: Immigration Creates Economic Growth (Summary)

Economic conditions tend to be better in cities with large proportions of immigrants, according to a study by the Alexis de Tocqueville Institution.

Earlier this year, it compiled data on the 85 most populous U.S. cities -- then compared the economic performance since 1980 of those cities with the largest number of immigrants to those with the lowest numbers.

Here are some of the findings, based on 1980s data:

  • Cities with high immigration rates created jobs at twice the rate of cities with low immigration.

  • Residents of high-immigration cities are, on average, 15 percent wealthier than those in low-immigration cities.

  • Cities with large shares of immigrants experienced a 95 percent growth in per-capita income -- compared to 88 percent in those with low immigrant populations.

  • Poverty rates were 17 percent higher in low-immigrant cities and grew twice as fast as in cities with lots of immigrants.

Moreover, the tax burden is 9 percent lower in cities with the highest numbers of immigrants.

Some economists think immigrant labor has helped keep certain industries -- such as the garment industry -- from fleeing the U.S. They also say immigrants are great entrepreneurs. In Los Angeles County during the period 1972 to 1992, the number of licensed Hispanic-owned firms grew 700 percent -- even though the Hispanic population grew by only 200 percent.

Source: Perspective, "Cities and Immigration," Investor's Business Daily, September 30, 1997.

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