State and Local Initiatives
They say all politics is local, right? While most of the debate about immigration focuses on congressional action (or inaction), local communities across the country are the ones who feel the value of immigration most tangibly. Now active in more than 50 communities – more than 80 percent of which are in conservative states – the NAE State & Local team works with policymakers, business, and civic leaders to promote policies and programs that help create jobs and drive economic growth. You can explore more of our work on the state and local level here.
Liberian Immigrant Serves Montana by Becoming Mayor of Its Capitol
Wilmot Collins knew nothing about cold weather. A Liberian, he had spent his life in sub-Saharan Africa. Now, at age 30, he was escaping civil war and moving to Montana, where his wife had spent a year during high school. So when a relative gave him two pairs of long… Read More
Filipino Immigrant Trains Lawyers to the Benefit of Montanans
Eduardo Capulong’s father, a prominent politician in the Philippines, had already endured one imprisonment when the family found their house ransacked by police and military forces one October evening. It was 1979, seven years after Ferdinand Marcos—notorious for torturing and killing his opponents—had imposed a martial-law dictatorship. “We fled here,”… Read More
Immigrant and Community Leader from Chile Paves the Way on Local Immigration Policy
Mirtha Becerra was born at the dawn of the Pinochet regime in Chile. When she was 11 years old, in the mid 1980s, her father, an architect, found himself unable to provide a good life for his family under the brutal dictatorship of General Augusto Pinochet Ugarte and took a… Read More
New American Economy Statement on Failed Immigration Legislation in the House of Representatives
NEW YORK – “Today proves it’ll take votes from both sides of the aisle for this Congress to get to yes on an immigration deal,” said John Feinblatt, President of New American Economy. “The right step for the House now is a successful discharge petition that advances a bipartisan solution… Read More
Mexican Immigrant Builds Automotive Business from the Group Up
Joaquin Cordero met his wife while working in Cancun, and moved with her in 1998 to Boise, her hometown. He had earned a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering in Mexico, but did not have U.S. licensure and spoke only Spanish. So he went to work as an auto technician. “When… Read More
Laotian Refugee, Entrepreneur, and PhD Candidate Calls Boise Home
When Palina Louangketh was three years old, her mother walked her and her brother into a field after a family dinner and kept going. They were escaping Laos, and would walk for two and a half weeks, always at night to evade communist patrols. During the day they hid or… Read More
Foreign-Born Residents Paid $430 Million in Taxes in Louisville in 2016
LOUISVILLE, KY – Immigrants in the Louisville metro area paid $430 million in taxes in 2016, including $282 million in federal taxes and $148 million in state and local taxes, according to a new report by New American Economy (NAE), released in partnership with the Louisville Mayor’s Office for… Read More
Demand for Bilingual Jobs in Arkansas Nearly Doubled in Five Years, New Study Shows
LITTLE ROCK, AR – Today, New American Economy (NAE) joins Arkansas business leaders and education advocates to support the creation of a state Seal of Biliteracy program as a resolution to establish the Seal is discussed at the Arkansas Department of Education’s State Board Meeting. A new report… Read More
Sioux City Journal: Report: Immigration fuels metro Sioux City’s recent population growth
Foreign-born newcomers accounted for more than 75 percent of metro Sioux City’s population growth between 2010 and 2015, a new report shows. The number of immigrants in the metro area were estimated at 14,817 in 2015, or 8.8 percent of the combined population of 169,069 for Plymouth and Woodbury counties… Read More
Immigrants in Siouxland Contribute Millions to Regional GDP and Play an Integral Role in the Local Workforce
SIOUX CITY, IA – Immigrants in Iowa’s Plymouth and Woodbury counties contributed $522.2 million to GDP and held $137.7 million in spending power in 2015, according to a new research brief released by New American Economy in partnership with One Siouxland. The report highlights the demographic and economic contributions… Read More
America's story is an immigrant story.
