Advice for Arnold, Part II
Advice on immigration to the immigrant governor-elect
By Yeh Ling-Ling
Published November 16, 2003 in the San Francisco Chronicle
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Californians are clearly unhappy with the state of our state. But our newly
elected governor can restore luster and prosperity to California if he has
the courage to take the necessary steps -- particularly in terms of
immigration.
To be blunt, our future will be lost unless we stop California's
accelerating population growth. Adding 600,000 newcomers every year to
California, essentially all immigration-related, who need housing, health
care, fire and police protection and many other costly social services will
only exacerbate the fiscal and growth problems we urgently need to solve.
Indeed, U.S. Census data showed that immigration was largely responsible for
the 30 percent increase in poverty in California in the last decade.
Furthermore, according to an analysis by the Center for Immigration Studies,
based on Census data collected in 2002, 28.1 percent of the estimated
3 million legal immigrant-headed households in the state and 31.5 percent of
the 600,000 illegal immigrant-headed households participated in at least on
one of four major welfare programs. The total estimated welfare spending, cash
and non-cash, given to legal immigrant families in California was roughly $6
billion, with illegal immigrant families accounting for $850 million in 2001
alone.
In addition, at least 400,000 illegal immigrant students are in California
schools, each costing the state an average of more than $6,000 a year. Well
over 25 percent of federal prisoners are illegal aliens who committed
crimes. Many county hospitals are on the verge of bankruptcy because of the
care they provide to illegal immigrant families. Such costs continue to rise
rapidly.
As part of his solution to California's fiscal crisis, Gov.-elect Arnold
Schwarzenegger should immediately take steps to discourage illegal
immigration.
He should work to repeal all legislation granting benefits to illegal
immigrants, including in-state tuition, driver's licenses and other measures
that serve as strong incentives to come or stay here illegally. Also, the
federal government should be challenged to send a firm and unequivocal
message that illegal aliens will not be able to work here, would receive no
benefits and would never be granted amnesty. (Congress is considering
granting amnesty to millions of illegal immigrants in the United States. If
enacted, this measure would allow many of the estimated 3 million illegal
immigrants living in California to petition for numerous relatives to
immigrate once they are naturalized. Millions of newcomers could potentially
be added to our population as the result of chain migration and births to
immigrants already here.)
Once illegal immigration is drastically reduced, incentives should be given
to millions of low-skilled unemployed or underemployed legal residents,
able-bodied welfare recipients and nonviolent inmates to take the jobs now
given to illegal immigrants. The resulting reductions in welfare costs and
unemployment benefits will further help close our state's budget gap.
Billing sponsors of family immigration for the welfare costs given to their
foreign-born relatives is long overdue. Those sponsors have pledged that
their relatives would not become public charges as a condition for coming
here.
As our schools, freeways, housing and labor markets are overflowing, a
moratorium on most categories of legal immigration is also warranted. New
job creation alone will not substantially reduce unemployment if California
imports vast numbers of workers.
Part of the savings from the above measures should be invested in education,
environmental protection, job training and crime prevention programs. A
better-educated, multiracial youth and a more productive, diverse workforce,
coupled with population stabilization, are necessary to ensure a long-term,
environmentally and economically sustainable California.
Many immigrants are model students and workers. But excessive immigration is
sinking the Golden State. Unless drastic immigration reduction is part of
the Schwarzenegger administration's action plan, the quality of life for all
legal residents of California will continue to deteriorate.
Yeh Ling-Ling is the executive director of Diversity Alliance for a Sustainable America.
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