[PEN-L:1868] STUDY: Immigrants Contribute More than they take

[JDevine@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx (James Devine)]

I don't think that this study is the first one showing that the
US as a whole gets a net benefit from the average immigrant. The
problem is that on a smaller level of aggregation (say, San Diego
County, in Southern California), it can be argued that the cost
to the government of the immigrant exceeds the benefits.
Naturally enough, there's no established fiscal mechanism for
compensating local areas for the uneven impact (just as some
areas benefit from military spending more than others).

Even if the micro-level studies are right, however, the white
middle-class folks in San Diego benefit from having cheap labor
to water their lawns and bus their dishes. This gives them
leisure time so they can complain about the "immigrant problem."

in pen-l solidarity,

Jim Devine   jdevine@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Econ. Dept., Loyola Marymount Univ.
7900 Loyola Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90045-8410 USA
310/338-2948 (daytime, during workweek); FAX: 310/338-1950
"Segui il tuo corso, e lascia dir le genti." (Go your own way
and let people talk.) -- K. Marx, paraphrasing Dante A.