home > think tank > research projects > Council Special Report on Immigration
| Staff: | Sebastian Mallaby, Director of the Maurice R. Greenberg Center for Geoeconomic Studies and Paul A. Volcker Senior Fellow for International Economics |
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| Author: | Gordon H. Hanson, Professor of Economics, University of California, San Diego |
January 2006 - April 2007
Immigration is a toxic political issue in the United States. This report by University of California, San Diego Professor Gordon Hanson indicates that the economic costs of illegal immigration roughly match the economic benefits. That is, the net economic impact of illegal immigration is close to zero. Thus, the political debate must revolve around other sources of costs, or efforts to curb illegal immigration, such as increased border enforcement, would result in a net loss to the U.S.economy. He also finds that illegal immigration provides a labor supply that more closely tracks shifts in the need for labor across time and geography, while legal immigration—even when temporary—cannot keep up with these cyclical shifts. Any policy aimed at addressing the demand for low-skilled labor must also address the need for flexibility.
Publications
April 2007
Council Special Report No. 26
This report examines the economics of illegal immigration and finds that the fiscal benefits of illegal immigration offset its costs. Further, the report finds that the flexibility provided by the illegal immigration system that benefits the U.S. economy cannot be provided by the legal immigration system.
Meetings
The Economic Logic of Illegal Immigration
Related Project: Council Special Report on Immigration
| Presider: | Edward Alden, Bernard L. Schwartz Senior Fellow, Council on Foreign Relations |
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| Speaker: | Gordon H. Hanson, Professor of Economics, University of California, San Diego |
Council Special Report on Immigration: Second Advisory Committee Meeting
Related Project: Council Special Report on Immigration
| Presider: | Mark R. Rosenzweig, Frank Altschul Professor of International Economics, Yale University |
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| Speaker: | Gordon H. Hanson, Professor of Economics, University of California, San Diego |
Council Special Report on Immigration: First Advisory Committee Meeting
Related Project: Council Special Report on Immigration
| Presider: | Mark R. Rosenzweig, Frank Altschul Professor of International Economics, Yale University |
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| Speaker: | Gordon H. Hanson, Professor of Economics, University of California, San Diego |
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Complete list of Council Special Reports
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Complete list of CFR Books
For more information on the David Rockefeller Studies Program, contact:
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+1.212.434.9626 (NY); +1.202.509.8405 (DC)
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