Chairman: Representative Linda Harper-Brown, District 105
Texas has the second largest illegal immigrant population in the nation; the
United States Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) estimates one
million undocumented immigrants in Texas as of 2000. The INS estimates that
as of January 2000, some seven million illegal immigrants lived in the
United States. In the 90s, an average of 350,000 illegal immigrants came to
this country every year. The Migration Policy Institute estimates that as
of October 2003, the illegal immigrant population was nine million.
Because of growing concerns, it is time the state estimates the impact of
illegal immigrants on state expenditures and formulates policies to deal
with this growing problem.
Questions to be considered by the TCCRI Task Force on the Impact of Illegal Immigration on State Appropriations include:
- What impact do illegal immigrants have on this state's economy?
- What is the fiscal cost of illegal immigrants accessing state programs like public education and health care, particularly emergency room care?
- What role can the state play in diminishing the influx of illegal immigrants?
- What resolutions could the legislature debate and pass to encourage action at the federal level?
- In light of the improvement in student achievement in California after ending bilingual programs, should Texas reconsider or abolish its bilingual education programs?