Illegals' Amnesty Could Cost $60 Billion a Year, Group Says

Since 04-13-06

By Randy Hall
CNSNews.com Staff Writer/Editor
April 11, 2006
http://www.cnsnews.com/ViewNation.asp?Page=/Nation/archive/200604/NAT20060411c.html

(CNSNews.com) - If an illegal immigrant amnesty or guest worker program similar to the ones being contemplated by the U.S. Senate and supported by President Bush were enacted, the cost to state and local governments would be staggering, an immigration reform group charged Tuesday.

The Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) estimates that state and local costs associated with illegal immigration for public education, health care and incarceration, now about $36 billion a year, would balloon to $61.5 billion by 2010 -- a 70 percent increase -- and increase to $106.3 billion by 2020.

As a result of an amnesty and a vastly expanded guest worker program, millions of current illegal aliens would gain legal access to government programs and services, a FAIR analysis states.

Moreover, newly legalized aliens would be allowed to bring their dependents to this country, adding to the burdens on schools and public health care. Similarly, state and local governments would have to provide for the education and health care of the dependents of the 400,000 new guest workers called for in the Senate proposal.

"From every possible angle, an illegal alien amnesty and guest worker program would be a fiscal and administrative nightmare," said Dan Stein, president of FAIR. "Never mind the fact that an illegal alien amnesty is a moral betrayal of the American public and immigrants who played by the rules.

"It would be an unfunded federal mandate that will bankrupt states, counties and cities all across the United States," Stein added.

Contrary to claims by proponents of amnesty, the tax contributions of newly legalized illegal aliens would not offset the additional costs, he stated. The estimated 12 million illegal aliens in the U.S. are overwhelmingly poorly educated and low skilled.

Even with legalization, their earning potential would be very limited, Stein noted. With the ability to legitimately claim dependents on their returns, their tax contributions would be negligible at best, and with programs like the Earned Income Tax Credit, many will actually get more back than they pay in.

None of the federal or local costs associated with an illegal alien amnesty or a massive guest worker program has even been considered as part of the Senate's deliberations, he said.

When asked point blank about the ramifications of their proposed legislation, Senate amnesty and guest worker supporters admitted that they have not been worked out. "The devil is in the details," said the ranking Democrat on the Judiciary Committee, Patrick Leahy of Vermont.

"'The devil is in the details' is an utterly reckless and irresponsible way to conduct public policy," responded Stein. "The fiscal, social, environmental and demographic consequences of what the Senate is proposing would be staggering.

"In an effort to respond to special interest pressure, the Senate and the Bush administration seem prepared to rush forward without any rational assessment of what it would mean for the future of the nation," he noted.

"We have seen where the 'devil is in the details' approach has gotten us in Iraq. The president and others pushing amnesty and guest workers have an obligation to think this one all the way through before acting," Stein concluded.

A breakdown of the calculation of amnesty costs and a state by state impact analysis can be found at FAIR's website.