Archive for September, 2010

California Legislature to Expand Illegal Alien Benefits – Dream Act Would Allow Access to Financial Aid, Grants Unless Vetoed by Governor

Friday, September 24th, 2010 at 10:46 pm  
Leave your comment

(Washington, D.C.  September 24, 2010)  Nearly three months into the fiscal year, the California legislature and Gov. Schwarzenegger are finalizing a budget agreement that calls for massive cuts in state programs to close the state’s projected $19 billion budget gap. While most Californians will be feeling the pain — and lots of it — the California legislature not only spared, but expanded benefits to at least one political interest in the state: Illegal aliens.

Senate Bill 1460 and Assembly Bill 1413, collectively-referred to as the California DREAM Act, were approved by the legislature and are headed to Gov. Schwarzenegger’s desk. By some estimates, these bills could provide over $38 million in state benefits to help illegal aliens attend California colleges and universities. This assistance comes on top of an estimated $88 million a year California taxpayers continue to provide to illegal aliens in the form of in-state tuition benefits, despite the fact that a state appeals court has ruled the policy unconstitutional.

If Gov. Schwarzenegger signs the California DREAM Act before the Sept. 30 deadline, illegal aliens would be eligible to receive taxpayer funded grants and assistance to offset the ever increasing costs of attending public colleges and universities in California. The bill also expands the definition of who is eligible to receive in-state tuition subsidies. Currently, students must have attended three years of high school in California to qualify. Under SB 1460, anyone who completes three years of secondary school, and earns a degree, in California is eligible for in-state tuition. Secondary schools include trade and adult schools.

“The California legislature continues to demonstrate its contempt for law-abiding, taxpaying Californians,” charged Dan Stein, president of the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR). “As they put the final touches on a budget that cuts vital services and programs, illegal aliens get new rewards.

“The California college and university system once the crown jewel of America’s public higher education system has been forced to cut admissions and programs, while dramatically increasing tuition and student fees in recent years. While countless deserving students, who are legal U.S. residents, are being left out in the cold because admissions have been cut, or because they cannot afford the rising tuitions, the legislature is approving new benefits to  illegal aliens,” said Stein.

Gov. Schwarzenegger refused to sign almost identical legislation in 2008. At the time, the governor stated, “[G]iven the precarious fiscal condition the state faces at this time, it would not be prudent to place additional demands on our limited financial aid resources as specified in this bill.”

“California’s fiscal condition has only grown more precarious since 2008,” noted Stein. We call upon Gov. Schwarzenegger to once again act as a check on a reckless and irresponsible legislature that continues to provide benefits to illegal aliens as it inflicts pain on everyone else in the state. Fiscal responsibility, not to mention basic respect for the people of California, requires that the governor veto SB 1460,” Stein concluded.

Some basic facts about illegal immigration and California higher education:

  • During the last fiscal year, the California State University system’s budget was cut by $564 million.
  • As a result of budget cuts, admissions to the 23 California State universities were reduced by 40,000 students. (One-time federal stimulus money will allow 10,000 of those seats to be restored.)
  • The average in-state tuition at a Cal State school is now $5,000 per year. As recently as the 2000-01 academic year, tuition cost $1,800.
  • The average in-state tuition at the ten University of California schools is $11,285 per year. Books, supplies, insurance and other requirements bring the cost to $16,470. Room and board for non-commuting students increases the cost to $29,450.
  • California already spends nearly $21.8 billion on all programs and services for illegal aliens and their families an amount greater than the state’s $19 billion projected budget shortfall.

Illegal Immigration Graphs – Undocumented Workers Population Greatly Reduced

Saturday, September 11th, 2010 at 2:53 pm  
Leave your comment

One interesting fact that can be found in the most recent statistics published on population numbers is that, according to the Department of Homeland Security, the number of undocumented workers in the US has sharply declined in recent years. Illegal immigration graphs show a downward curve in population numbers.

Illegal immigration has long been a thorn on the side of the US government. Despite its best efforts, many undocumented workers still manage to successfully cross the US-Mexico borders. Added to this is the fact that many whose visas have expired continue to stay in the country. These two type of foreign workers number in the millions today.

Working under the Radar

The latest news, however, shows that the economic recession may have affected illegal immigration. In 2009, there were 10.8 million illegal aliens living in the US according to Department of Homeland Security findings. That is lower than the 11.6 million figure from 2008. The number of illegal immigrants in the US declined by 8 percent between 2007 and 2009. Around 74 percent of those illegal immigrants came from Mexico.

The cause of the drop in numbers is unknown though there are many possible reasons, chief among them the current economic slowdown. Others speculate that the number of illegal workers entering the US is lower or that more have been deported or left voluntarily (again, possibly due to the recession).

However, illegal immigration graphs and statistics published have shown a decline in population since before the economic problems.

California, which has long been the state of choice for illegal immigrants, has seen a decline in numbers of new illegal immigrants in the last 12 years. California was home to 30 percent of undocumented workers in the country in 2000 but by 2009, that number had dropped by 6 percent to 24 percent. The state’s decline in new illegal immigrant population mirrors the nationwide trend. Although other states have had an increase in illegal immigrant numbers, across the nation the overall population has been in decline.

Analysts say that the decline has been caused by fewer new jobs opening up in the market and therefore a decline in demand for immigrant labor. Others see it as evidence that stricter immigration law enforcement has been more effective.

The numbers clearly show that any fears of a massive influx of illegal immigrants across the border are unfounded at the present time. Despite the common worries that schools and hospitals will be flooded by the increasing numbers of undocumented workers, such fears are greatly exaggerated or groundless since illegal immigration numbers are actually at an all-time low.

Likewise, there is a decline in the number of violent crimes at the border, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation or FBI.

The drop in numbers is real and substantial but analysts cannot say whether the economy or the tougher stance on illegal immigration is responsible for the decline. The only way to tell is to compare the current illegal immigration graphs with future ones that will be published when the economy recovers.

Biased and Hysterical Media Reporting

Friday, September 3rd, 2010 at 2:34 pm  
Comments (1)

illegal immigration news Turn on the television or cable TV and you will hear a lot about the current news and issues. One of these is illegal immigration news which the media has built a lot of hype and hysteria around, giving the American public a false view of several key issues.

The first and most pervasive myth that some in the media sensationalize is that illegal aliens commit more crimes than citizens and that there is a crime wave about to sweep the nation.

This idea is simply not true. In fact, the reality is quite the opposite of what many people believe. Of course, as with any large population, there will be a number of crimes including violent and sexual crimes. However, researchers from the University of Michigan and Harvard University have found that immigrants commit fewer crimes than citizens and that there were lower rates of crime in areas with large immigrant populations.

This is exactly the opposite of some illegal immigration news reported in the media.

Another common myth that is frequently discussed in the news is that illegal aliens do not pay taxes and put an undue strain on social services. It is not uncommon to hear callers, guests and media people complaining about how illegal immigrants are receiving food stamps, Social Security and other government aid without paying for it in the form of taxes.

However, again the truth is the opposite of what is claimed as fact on television and in the news. Illegal immigrants are not eligible to receive most government aid and they do pay taxes as well as Social Security dues. As a matter of fact, even documented immigrants are not eligible for food stamps, welfare, Medicaid and other such forms of government assistance during their first five years of stay in the US.

Quite apart from these two common myths, there are many other unsubstantiated fears that the media have planted in the minds of their audience.

For example, massive voter fraud is supposed to have been perpetuated by illegal immigrants. This is clearly absurd as voter fraud is a very rare occurrence. Only 24 people in the whole of the United States have been convicted of voter fraud from 2002 to 2005. The incidence of voter fraud is roughly the same as that of people dying from lighting strikes, a frequent metaphor for an extremely unlikely event.

Feeding on the hysteria about illegal immigration are some rumors about “Aztlan” or parts of the Southwest that Mexico supposedly secretly plans to conquer. However Mexican-born citizens and undocumented workers are overwhelmingly not in favor of any such plan and that there is no real Aztlan plan, it is simply a tale that has no real basis in reality.

Media has a responsibility to the public to report the illegal immigration news fairly and accurately. In addition to these myths, there have been calls for media to stop using the terms “aliens” and “illegal aliens” because it dehumanizes the people involved. Some media reports even use the term “illegals” as a shorthand term for illegal immigrants. Such use unfairly criminalizes undocumented workers. Using “illegals” as a noun to refer to a person also criminalizes the person himself, not the actions that may have been made. It is hoped that the media will refer to them as undocumented workers instead.