Research by Author & Topic

Publications by Everett Henderson on Immigration

Arkansas, which had the 4th fastest growing immigrant population and fastest growing Latino population of any state between 2000 and 2005, is the subject of this series of reports. Volume 1 provides detailed demographic information about the foreign-born in Arkansas and compares immigrants to natives on a wide variety of quality-of-life measures. It profiles immigrants' countries of birth, legal status, educational attainment, poverty, homeownership, employment, and the primary industries in which they are employed. Volume 2 assesses immigrants' impacts on the Arkansas economy, in terms of consumer spending, tax contributions, fiscal costs, and the savings that businesses and consumers realize by using immigrant labor. An executive summary is also included.

In 2004 there were about 50,000 immigrants in the Louisville metropolitan area, representing 4.5 percent of the area’s population. Louisville, like other Southeastern cities, has a relatively small but rapidly growing foreign-born population. But Louisville’s immigrants are more diverse than elsewhere in the Southeast: higher shares are from African and Asian, and a lower share from Latin America. Louisville also has a lower share of undocumented immigrants and a higher share of refugees, due to a large and successful resettlement program. Louisville’s immigrants—which make up an increasing component of the labor force in sectors such as manufacturing, retail and health care—are also relatively well educated compared to the nationwide foreign-born population. This report, sponsored by the Louisville Metro Office for International Affairs, describes characteristics and trends in the city’s international population, and makes recommendations for the future successful integration.

This report provides estimates on federal, state and local taxes paid by immigrant households in the Washington DC metropolitan region in 1999-2000. The region’s almost 1 million immigrant households comprised 21 percent of all households and had $29.5 billion in income, or 19 percent of the income of all households. Immigrant households paid $9.8 billion or 18 percent of the region’s total taxes, even though they had lower incomes on average than non-immigrant households ($78,000 versus $88,000). They contributed almost a quarter of the local taxes collected in the region’s two largest jurisdictions: Montgomery County, MD, and Fairfax County, VA.

This report discusses the diversity of Connecticut's immigrants, their participation in the labor force, and their access to health care. Connecticut's economy is attracting large numbers of both high- and low-skilled immigrants. Some immigrants-especially Asians-are better educated and out-earn U.S.-born workers, while others--particularly Latinos--are poorer and earn much less. Over 40 percent of Latino non-citizens and a quarter of their children are uninsured. While HUSKY--the state's Medicaid and State Children's Health Insurance Program--covers many immigrant parents and their children, confusion about eligibility and application barriers deter participation. The report offers recommendations to improve health care access for immigrants and their children.

Immigrants compose a large and growing share of U.S. workers, and of low-income working families. In 2001 immigrants were one fifth of all low-wage workers, and immigrant families were one-quarter of all low-income working families. Like other low-income families, immigrants face economic hardship and need work supports such as tax credits, food, housing assistance, health care, and child care. Immigrant families, however, are less likely to be eligible for or have access to needed benefits such as the Earned Income Tax Credit, Medicaid, Food Stamps, and child care subsidies.