Economics
Michigan to Immigrants: You’re Welcome Here
It is clear that Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder understands that immigration can be a potent boost to his state’s economy. It’s also an important component of economic revitalization for a city such as Detroit. Improving the nation’s broken immigration system could have enormous economic benefits for Michigan and states across the country, so Snyder joined former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and former Secretary of Commerce Carlos Gutierrez, in Washington Friday to continue urging lawmakers to overhaul the U.S. immigration system. As Gutierrez explained, “Our laws aren’t serving our economy.” And Bloomberg noted that it is terrible economic policy to turn away foreign born entrepreneurs and innovators while also making it difficult for foreign-born graduates to remain in the country after earning degrees from our colleges and universities. State leaders recognize this as well, but they also know upgrading immigration laws requires congressional action. “We need comprehensive immigration reform. Bottom line,” Snyder said Friday. “To be blunt, we have a dumb system.” Read More
Nuevo Estudio Revela Causas de Migración de Retorno a México
Esta semana la organización Mexicans and Americans Working Together (MATT) presentó los resultados de un nuevo estudio que pone de relieve algunos cambios importantes en la migración de retorno de Estados Unidos a México. Uno de los méritos de este estudio es que nos recuerda el carácter dinámico y bidireccional de los flujos migratorios entre los dos países. Entre 2005 y 2010, 1.390.000 personas migraron de Estados Unidos a México. De ese total, 985.000 son migrantes de retorno. Curiosamente, las deportaciones (que, como sabemos, se han intensificado enormemente durante el gobierno de Obama) representan sólo el 11 % de toda la migración de retorno a México en ese período. Esto significa que un número significativo de migrantes de retorno "eligió" volver a México voluntariamente. Read More
New York City Pilots Free Legal Representation in Immigration Court
In criminal courts throughout the United States, the government provides defendants who cannot afford an attorney with a free public defender. In immigration courts, which are not part of the criminal court system, immigrants who are unable to hire a private attorney and cannot find a free legal service provider are forced to face off on their own against trained government attorneys. Individuals facing deportation had no legal representation in about 44% of the cases the immigration courts ruled on in 2012 – more than 126,000 cases in one year. But a new program in a New York City immigration court could change this system – for a limited number of indigent, detained immigrants, a pilot “public defender” program is providing free representation in immigration court. Read More
Record Number of International Students Add $24 billion to U.S. Economy
A record number of international students studying in the U.S. contributed billions to the U.S. economy during the 2012-2013 academic year, according to an economic analysis by NAFSA: Association of International Educators. Over the academic year, international students and their families support 313,000 jobs and contributed $24 billion to the U.S. economy. The NAFSA report is based on enrollment data from the latest Open Doors Report from the Institute of International Education (IIE), which found that 819,644 international students studied in the U.S. during the 2012-2013 academic year. A growing number of students from China and Saudi Arabia led the 7 percent increase. And based on NAFSA’s analysis, the jump adds up to a 6.2 percent increase in job support creation and a 10 percent increase in dollars added to the U.S. economy over the previous academic year. Read More
After Government Reopens, Calls for Immigration Reform Build
Now that Congress has ended the government shutdown and narrowly averted hitting the nation’s debt ceiling, it should come as no surprise that immigration reform is back in the news. Supporters of reform are pushing for House leadership to bring a path to citizenship and other immigration bills to the floor for a vote, while President Obama has called on lawmakers to improve the U.S. immigration system by the end of the year. “It’s really important for the country. And now is the time to do it,” Obama said in a recent interview. Read More
Dollars and Lives Lost in the Wait for Immigration Reform
Two-and-a-half months after the Senate passed immigration reform legislation (S. 744), the House of Representatives continues to dawdle. Other than giving speeches and mulling over a few backward-looking, enforcement-only bills, the House has done nothing to revamp the broken U.S. immigration system or to realistically resolve the status of the 11 million unauthorized immigrants now living in the United States. The standard excuse for this inaction is that there are too many other high-priority items on the legislative agenda right now—so immigration reform will have to wait. But while Congress waits, dollars and lives are being lost. Read More
Months After Passage, Anti-Immigrant Group Still Mischaracterizes Senate Bill
The immigration reform bill (S.744) that the Senate passed in June would fix our broken work visa programs for lower skilled, higher skilled, and agricultural workers; eliminate decades-long backlogs in our immigrant visa programs; increase job and wage protections for U.S. workers; and greatly increase our investment in border security. In addition, the bill would have fiscal and economic effects that would be overwhelmingly positive, according to the Congressional Budget Office (CBO). If enacted, the bill would help reduce the federal budget deficit by approximately $1 trillion over 20 years, would boost the U.S. economy as whole without negatively affecting U.S. workers, and would greatly reduce future undocumented immigration, according to the CBO. However, the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) released a report this week criticizing the bill. They claim S.744 offers an immediate “amnesty” for the undocumented, lacks specific metrics for measuring border enforcement, weakens the visa entry-exit system, and creates a “nebulous new system” that fails to protect Americans from illegal foreign workers. Read More
Letter from Business Urges Congress to Create a 21st Century Immigration System
As an increasing number of organizations voice their support for comprehensive immigration reform, the business community added theirs this week through a letter to Congress. Business now joins a broad swath of the American public that wants Congress to pass immigration reform. The letter sent to Members of the U.S. House of Representatives represents a nationwide coalition of 420 companies and includes business and industry associations and state and local chambers of commerce. It encourages Members of Congress to enact legislation that would repair and modernize our immigration system and comes on the heels of other similar efforts by higher education administrators, faith groups, faculty and scholars, non-profits, and other coalitions. Read More
The Immigration Debate Could Use a Healthy Dose of Facts
Immigration is sure to be a hot topic when Members of Congress meet their constituents face-to-face during the upcoming summer recess. The full Senate has passed a comprehensive immigration reform bill that includes a controversial “border surge” as well as a path to citizenship for unauthorized immigrants already living in the United States; the House Committee on Homeland Security has passed an enforcement-only border bill that doesn’t even acknowledge the other components of immigration reform; and there continues to be much heated public debate about what the House will do next and whether the reform effort will survive the vagaries of partisan politics. As politicians and voters attempt to wade through all of the thorny issues that are raised by the topic of immigration reform, and as journalists attempt to report on these many complex issues, there is something which should be kept front and center: facts. Read More
How States And Local Economies Benefit From Immigrants
Detroit usurped Jefferson County, Alabama’s place last week as the largest municipality in the United States ever to file for bankruptcy. And as signs increasingly pointed toward the city’s financial issues, local leaders in Southeast Michigan have been exploring ways in which to stabilize or strengthen Detroit’s economy. One way to do that is to encourage more immigrants to settle there. New restaurants, shops, and residents already have helped to revitalize one area in Southwest Detroit called Mexicantown. And there is no doubt that immigrant entrepreneurs and innovators play an important role throughout Michigan as well. Immigrant entrepreneurs create jobs, bring in additional revenue, and contribute significantly to the state’s economy. Highly skilled immigrants are vital to the state’s innovation activities, spurring further growth. As such, local leaders and advocates recognize the importance of immigrants in their communities and support immigration through local “welcoming” and integration initiatives. Read More
All gifts are matched dollar for dollar
No one should face the immigration system alone
