The Heritage Foundation released a study showing that illegal immigrants are a net drain on government resources when four types of government benefits are considered. Those four are direct benefits, means tested welfare benefits, public education and population-based services (roads, cops, firefighters, parks, etc.)
Download the PDF at The Fiscal Cost of Unlawful Immigrants and Amnesty to the U.S. Taxpayer and/or read the executive summary.
They conclude that the value of the services illegal immigrants consume over their lifetimes exceeds the money they pay as taxes. And it would get worse after amnesty. The chart on the right was lifted off the PDF and purports to show the after-amnesty lifetime cost.
But the reason for that, at least at the federal level, is the highly progressive income tax system in place whereby the people making the most money account for must of the tax revenue. As a result, the top 50% of earners pay over 97% of the taxes. (See this neat interactive chart, also at Heritage.org.
So while Heritage points to a legitimate problem of illegal immigrants most likely being in the lower tiers of the income brackets and thereby driving up the deficit by consuming more than they pay, the real problem is the progressive income tax.
The flat tax has a definite appeal to those of us who seek fairness, and although it might not cure the problem identified by Heritage.org, it certainly couldn't hurt. Meanwhile, the deficit just keeps growing. And the people who elect our presidents turn a blind eye to it.
Comments