The cost of illegal immigration in Texas grew significantly between 2010 and 2013 because of rising numbers of illegal immigrants in the state. Research suggests the state and local taxes paid by illegal aliens don’t come close to making up for expenditures on services.
The number of illegal immigrants increased by 70,000 between 2010 and 2013 for an estimated total of 1.81 million illegal aliens,
according to a study by the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR). The estimated burden for Texas taxpayers jumped from nearly $8.9 billion to $12.1 billion a year during that time.
The burden amounts to a cost of $1,197 for every Texas household headed by native-born or naturalized U.S. citizens, FAIR reported.
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Education costs came to $8.5 billion for 195,000 illegal alien children and 481,000 U.S.-born children of
illegal immigrants, Breitbart News reported. There were also additional costs for English language instruction for children in public schools.
Taxpayers in Texas spend some $1.9 billion a year for Medicaid and other health care programs for illegal immigrants and their children. Some $47.8 million a year is spent on social welfare programs. Law enforcement costs are estimated at $1.1 billion for illegal immigration. There are remaining government services that cost taxpayers another $577 million a year.
FAIR president Dan Stein stated in a 2014 news release that money spent on illegal immigrants for government services takes away from other needs “such as improving schools, or expanding and maintaining vital infrastructure.”
The Institute for Taxation and Economic Policy reported that unauthorized immigrants in Texas paid $1.6 billion in state and local taxes in 2010,
the American Immigration Council reported. Although it doesn’t compensate for the state and local expenditures, unauthorized immigrants in Texas contribute to more than $69 billion in economic activity, according to a study by the Perryman Group.
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Unauthorized immigrants made up 8.9 percent of the state’s labor force, or some 1.2 million workers, in 2012, according to the Pew Research Center.
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