Tuesday, July 7, 2015

Illegal immigrants have a positive net effect on the US economy - Mary Cummins, Los Angeles, California

I see many people stating that illegal immigrants are a drain on the economy and society yet they never quote any statistics. What is the real net effect of illegal immigration? It's actually positive for the economy overall.

New York Times 2013 article "Do Illegal Immigrants Actually Hurt the US Economy?" http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/17/magazine/do-illegal-immigrants-actually-hurt-the-us-economy.html?_r=0 The next effect of illegal immigrants is POSITIVE. Let me try to explain in more detail than the article.

My family owned a construction salvage yard. We employed illegal and legal immigrants. THEY ALL PAID TAXES. In order to work for us they needed a Tax Payer ID number. These numbers are given to illegal, legal immigrants who need them to get a job and can't get a social security number. Payroll taxes are taken out of their salaries including SSI. They pay taxes and file a tax return.

One major thing most people don't know is that while they pay into the system they can't always take out of the system. They pay into social security but generally can't take money out of social security. Just think how upside down our social security would be without immigrants paying into the system?

Illegal immigrants also pay sales tax on everything they buy. While they may be poor they are major consumers. Many American owned businesses rely heavily on the purchases of illegal immigrants. They also pay check cashing fees, payday loan fees, hard money loans to buy a home and cars. If they own property, they pay property tax. Yes, they can buy a house and pay property tax. Property tax pays for schools, roads, public services.

Illegal immigrants are generally unskilled uneducated laborers. These people are willing to do the dirty, heavy lifting, hard work jobs such as construction work, maids, nannies, day laborers, janitorial, gardening, tree trimming... I have never seen a white American in line with the day laborers. I've never seen a white maid walking up the street to work. They have all been illegal Mexican immigrants.

While these illegal immigrants live here they pay rent, buy food, pay for utilities just like the rest of us. When they pay rent they are indirectly paying property tax which pays for schools, roads, government agencies and social services. If they own a car they pay to buy it, pay sales tax on the purchase/sale, pay for maintenance, repairs, insurance and gas. They are paying into the system just like we are.

Some say that some illegal immigrants get free education for their kids. It's not free. They pay rent or property tax while they live here. Some say they get free Medi-Cal, food stamps, welfare. This is completely false. They don't qualify. Even if they were legal immigrants, they still have to live here for five years to qualify. Most who are ill or injured go to cheap or free privately run non-profit clinics. They pay cash at the cheap clinics. They don't want to go to a hospital for fear of being deported.

Here is another great article on the five main illegal immigrant myths debunked. They pay taxes. They don't take American jobs. They provide much needed unskilled labor. They are not a drain on the system. They pay property, sales, sin, transfer...taxes as major consumers of American businesses. http://money.cnn.com/2014/11/20/news/economy/immigration-myths/

A last myth is that they are "criminals, drug dealers and rapists." The FBI stated that most crimes are committed by white male citizens. This is from 2012. It would make more sense to look at crime per person of each race. https://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/crime-in-the-u.s/2012/crime-in-the-u.s.-2012/tables/43tabledatadecoverviewpdf

The reverse is actually most likely the truth. Because they are illegal they don't report crime against themselves. They are most likely to be the victim of crime because people know they will never report it. They've been the victims of muggings, robbery, assault, rape and murder. They've also been the victim of fraud most likely by employers, vendors. Again they don't report it. Many people rip them off especially in construction jobs. If they don't have a contractor license or work for someone who does, they can't win a lawsuit or collect.

I may post more articles. It's frustrating to see people not know the reality of illegal immigrants. Donald Trump is spreading mass misinformation about illegal immigrants. He is really one to talk as his grandfather was an immigrant and not a naturalized citizen for seven years. Almost everyone in Donald Trump's family is an immigrant including two wives.

We need a better process for making these people legal immigrants. They will be here no matter what because we need them as workers.

A last note "illegal immigrants" are not necessarily "illegal immigrants." It's illegal to enter the country illegally. One can enter the country with work, student, tourist visa then over stay your visit. That would be a civil violation and not criminal.

Mary Cummins of Animal Advocates is a wildlife rehabilitator licensed by the California Department of Fish and Game. Mary Cummins is also a licensed real estate appraiser in Los Angeles, California.

Mary Cummins, Mary K. Cummins, Mary Katherine Cummins, Mary Cummins-Cobb, Mary, Cummins, Cobb, real estate, appraiser, appraisal, instructor, teacher, Los Angeles, Santa Monica, Beverly Hills, Pasadena, Brentwood, Bel Air, California, licensed, permitted, single family, condo, pud, hud, fannie mae, freddie mac, uspap, certified, residential, certified resident, apartment building, multi-family, commercial, industrial, expert witness, civil, criminal, orea, dre, insurance, bonded, experienced, bilingual, spanish, english, form, 1004, 2055, land, raw, acreage, vacant, insurance, cost, income approach, market analysis, comparative, theory, appraisal theory, cost approach, sales, matched pairs, plot, plat, map, diagram, photo, photographs, photography, rear, front, street, subject, comparable, sold, listed, active, pending, expired, cancelled, listing, mls, multiple listing service, claw, themls,

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