Philadelphia Citizenship Attorneys: Immigrants are Essential to the Economy
Immigration is a heated issue in America, largely because of the politics involved. Setting politics aside, consider the ramifications of reducing immigration on the economy. To understand why immigrants are essential to the economy the numbers, rather than political passions, must be considered.
The United States’ Economy by the Numbers
When the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) and Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) make projections for the economy, no distinction is made between native born workers and immigrants. Both organizations project growth of the U.S. economy over the next decade to be two percent. Even with such modest growth, the CBO projects the national deficit to grow from 2.9 percent to 4.9 percent over the next decade. The deficit is the amount of money being spent by the nation above the taxes being collected. In other words, to keep the country afloat financially, the federal government is going to have to borrow more money. That projection assumes that current laws and immigration practices remain in place.
Immigrants currently comprise a substantial portion of the economy, contributing 17 percent to the GDP. The GDP, or Gross Domestic Product, is the total value of goods and services produced in the nation. GDP is the measure of the health of an economy. Remove the immigrants currently contributing such a large sum to the GDP and instead of economic growth, the United States experiences a shrinking economy.
The only way to avoid a catastrophic fiscal situation is to either reduce the deficit or increase the size of the workforce. To reduce the deficit, the federal government would need to curb spending by $343 billion, not counting the contribution to the economy made by immigrants. Furthermore, most immigrants are filling jobs that native born workers either do not want or are untrained to fill. To remove the immigrant workers would immediately create a worker shortage that could not be readily filled.
Removing Immigrants Will Increase Debt
Removing immigrants currently filling jobs which would not be readily filled would instantly remove $3.16 trillion from the GDP. This is determined by multiplying the GDP in 2016 of $18.56 trillion by 17 percent. In other words, eliminating immigrant workers will instantly increase the deficit to $3.5 trillion.
Considering that the deficit adds to the total debt of the United States, the current debt of $19 trillion will skyrocket should immigrant workers be removed from the equation. Given the numbers, not only are immigrant workers essential to the economy, clearly more are needed.
Philadelphia Citizenship Attorneys at Surin & Griffin, P.C. Help the Economy by Helping Immigrants
Regardless of where someone sits on the political fence, there can be no denial that helping immigrants remain productive workers in America only helps the economy. The Philadelphia citizenship attorneys at Surin & Griffin, P.C. help the economy by helping immigrants. The workforce of the nation is aging and retiring. To continue payments to Social Security and Medicare for these workers, the country cannot afford to lose workers. If you are an immigrant, know that Surin & Griffin, P.C. is on your side. We will help you every step of the way to remain in this country. For a confidential consultation, contact us online or call 215-925-4435.
