Posted on Tuesday, November 12, 2024

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by Outside Contributor

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Soaring illegal immigration during the Biden-Harris administration was a major campaign theme, with a pre-election Harvard poll finding Americans considered immigration the second-most important issue—right behind inflation and ahead of the economy. An AP exit poll seconded that ranking, with 39 percent of voters citing the economy as their top issue, followed by immigration at 20 percent—up from three percent in 2020. Of them, “88% went for Trump.” Meanwhile, the 82-page policy book Vice President Kamala Harris released in September failed to even mention immigration.

While critics often connect illegal immigration with elevated crime, compromised national security, and other ills, another key issue is the high cost of government benefits paid to illegal immigrants. While deporting illegal immigrants with criminal records is first on their to-do list, the new Trump administration should act to restrict benefits paid to illegal immigrants, too. As it does so, here are ten key facts on illegal immigration, drawn from sources on the political left, right, and center. 

1. How many illegal immigrants are in the US and how many entered during the Biden-Harris administration?

“Recent estimates range from 10.3 million to 11.4 million unauthorized individuals living in the United States.”

“…the Biden-Harris Administration has released into the United States more than 5.6 million illegal aliens, with another 1.9 million illegal alien ‘gotaways’ escaping into the country…”

2. What is the total annual cost of illegal immigration?

“At the start of 2023, the net cost of illegal immigration for the United States – at the federal, state, and local levels – was at least $150.7 billion.”

3. How much are those costs per taxpayer?

“Illegal immigration costs each American taxpayer $1,156 per year ($957 after factoring in taxes paid by illegal aliens).”

“Each illegal alien or U.S.-born child of illegal aliens costs the U.S. $8,776 annually.”

4. How much are the costs over a lifetime?

“….using existing estimates of the net lifetime fiscal impact (taxes paid minus costs) of immigrants by education indicates that the fiscal drain created by the average illegal immigrant is $68,000.”

5. How does illegal immigrants’ benefit use compare with other households?

“We estimate that 59.4 percent of illegal immigrant households use one or more welfare programs. Compared to the U.S.-born, illegal-headed households use every program at statistically higher rates, except for SSI, TANF, and housing. Illegal immigrants have especially high use of cash (mainly the EITC), food programs, and Medicaid.”

6. How can illegal immigrant households collect so much welfare?

“The high use of welfare by illegal immigrant-headed households is due to several factors. First and foremost, more than half of all illegal immigrant households have at least one U.S.-born child on behalf of whom they can receive benefits…”

7. How many households with children are headed by illegal immigrants?

“…there are nearly 2.7 million households with at least one illegal head and one child….there are more than 5.3 million U.S.-born children of illegal aliens who hold SSNs.”

8. How much do these households collect in key federal food and cash benefits?

“…the total estimated cost to the American taxpayer of providing SNAP to the children of illegal aliens is almost $5.8 billion.”

“…the total cost for providing TANF benefits to the U.S.-born children of illegal aliens comes out to approximately $1.43 billion.” 

“…illegal alien households received approximately $13.4 billion in child tax credits in 2022 for the 2021 tax year.” After the elevated child tax credit expired in 2022, this amount is expected to be “in the area of $5.4 billion going forward.”

9. How much do illegal immigrant households collect in federal health benefits?

According to the House Budget Committee, the $16.2 billion increase in Medicaid-funded emergency services for illegal immigrants under the Biden-Harris administration reflects an “increase of 124% compared to the same period under the Trump Administration.” As Chairman Jodey Arrington (R-TX) notes, “This is on top of the executive action taken to provide $9 billion in Obamacare to illegal immigrants.” 
 

10. Did illegal immigrant households collect pandemic benefits supported by federal funds?

Yes. Democrats’ March 2021 American Rescue Plan provided states $350 billion in flexible federal funds, which some states used to provide unemployment checks to illegal immigrants:

[New York] just created a new $2.1 billion program for those living in the US illegally….funds from the new program will flow to 290,000 individuals across New York, including 92,000 who may soon receive $15,600 in a lump sum payment — the equivalent of $300 per week of unemployment in the past year. That’s for those who, despite not being authorized to work in the US, can prove they lost employment during the pandemic.

Reprinted with permission from AEI by Matt Weidinger.

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