Cost of Illegal Immigration in Wyoming

There were about 5,000 illegal immigrants in Wyoming in 2010, the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) estimated. The organization, which studies immigration policies and populations throughout the country, estimated the cost of illegal immigration to Wyoming’s taxpayers was $59 million a year.

The largest portion of expenditures, at $31.6 million a year, was for educating the children of illegal immigrants, FAIR reported. Taxpayers also spent $6.4 million a year on welfare for illegal aliens and $5.5 million annually for law enforcement activities needed for illegal immigration.

The statewide costs included $4.3 million a year for health care services to illegals and $11.4 million a year in additional state and local operating costs.

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Each of the state’s native-born headed households spent $289 a year on costs for illegal immigration, FAIR reported.

Illegal immigrants made up 1.3 percent of the state’s workforce in 2012, according to the Pew Research Center. The unauthorized immigrants paid $3.6 million in state and local taxes in 2012, according to the American Immigration Council, citing a report from the Institute for Taxation and Economic Policy. About $2.9 million of that amount was for sales taxes with the remaining amount going to property taxes. Legal status for Wyoming’s unauthorized immigrants would only add another $300,000 to the tax revenue, the institute reported.

However, illegal immigrants play a part in improving the state’s economy. A report from the Perryman Group found that Wyoming would lose $194.3 million in economic activity if illegals were removed from the state.

Immigrants in general made up 3.6 percent of the state’s workforce, or 10,984 workers, in 2011, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. They have continued to contribute to the economic growth in the state over the years.

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The buying power of Latinos in Wyoming in 2012 totaled $1.6 billion, an increase of more than 500 percent since 1990, according to a study on economic growth at the University of Georgia. Asian purchasing power amounted to $365 million for the state in 2012, an increase of more than 1,100 percent since 1990.

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