Cited by 32Migration and Labor DynamicsMigration, Refugees, and IntegrationEconomic and Fiscal Studies

The DOI matches its Crossref record; 4 of the 4 references it cites were found in a registry or an index; none of the 22 sources its claims cite is checked for support yet.

New Findings on the Fiscal Impact of Immigration in the United States

Open access
Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, Orrenius, Pia M.·2017·Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, Working Papers

Abstract

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (2016) report on the economic and fiscal effects of immigration included the first set of comprehensive fiscal impacts published in twenty years. The estimates highlight the pivotal role of the public goods assumption. If immigrants are assigned the average cost of public goods, such as national defense and interest on the debt, then immigration's fiscal impact is negative in both the short and long run. To the extent that immigrants impose net costs, these are concentrated at the state and local level and are largely due to the costs of public schooling.

Overview

AI snapshot

Written from the paper’s full text.

TL;DR

This working paper reviews the 2016 National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NAS) report on immigration's fiscal effects, emphasizing that the public-goods assumption drives whether immigration looks like a net fiscal cost or benefit. Under marginal-cost public goods assumptions, the long-run fiscal impact of immigration is positive, with recent immigrants contributing a net present value of $259,000.

Key findings

  • Cross-sectional (static) estimates based on 2013 CPS data show immigrants as a net fiscal drain, but so are natives; when immigrants are assigned the marginal cost of public goods, their fiscal impact is significantly less negative than natives' (immigrants' tax contributions cover 93 percent of their publicly provided benefits vs. 77 percent for natives).
  • In dynamic 75-year estimates, a recent immigrant represents a positive net present value of $259,000 (no public goods assigned) or $173,000 (public goods assigned); for all immigrants the figures are $58,000 and -$5,000 respectively.
  • By education, a recent immigrant with more than a college degree contributes over $800,000 net over 75 years ($812,000 with no public goods; $726,000 with public goods), while a recent immigrant lacking a high school diploma represents a net cost of about $117,000 (or -$200,000 with public goods).
  • Low-skilled immigrants impose a net fiscal cost, but the net fiscal cost of similarly-educated natives is far larger — on the order of $200,000 less in fiscal cost for an immigrant lacking a high school diploma versus a native high school dropout; the only category where immigrants fare worse than natives is among bachelor's degree holders.

Methods

  • The paper is a review/summary of the 2016 NAS report's fiscal estimates, replicating its tables and comparing them with the 1997 National Research Council report and Lee and Miller (2000).
  • It presents both cross-sectional (static) estimates based on 2013 CPS data and dynamic 75-year per capita net present value estimates (in 2012 dollars, based on the CBO long-term budget outlook), each under two public-goods scenarios (average cost vs. marginal cost).
  • Estimates are broken down by generation (first, second, third-plus), level of government (federal vs. state and local), and immigrant education level.

Limitations

  • The paper states that cross-sectional/static estimates are "inherently limited," including not controlling for age differences between foreign-born and native-born populations at a point in time, and "should be used with great caution."
  • The paper notes that dynamic estimates require "making many assumptions" when projecting income and benefits into the future.
  • The paper states the 2016 NAS report "does not indicate a preferred or baseline specification" for the public-goods assumption, though the author argues the marginal cost assumption is most relevant for policy.

Model-written summary. Check it against the paper before relying on it.

Integrity signals

Registry

Crossref · 10.24149/wp1704

Cites

4 of 4 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

Statistics

Nothing to recompute.

Verification

Claims the paper makes

18 Sources not found · 9 Own interpretation · 5 No basis given · 3 Own result · 2 No full text of the sources · 1 Not checked yet · 1 Own method

Show all 21 claims

  • It may state two separate claims as one. 15
  • Probably not a substantial claim. 7
18 of 18
  • The authors state this as an assumption.

    An additional immigrant does not increase spending on public goods.

    “If we assume that an additional immigrant does not increase spending on public goods, which is a reasonable assumption”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    Immigrant families in the United States have more children than native families.

    “immigrant families in the United States have more children than do native families”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    Immigrants have lower incomes than natives.

    “Immigrants' lower income also means they pay less in taxes on average than natives.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    Immigrants have more minor children than natives.

    “they have lower incomes and more minor children”
4 of 4

Citations

Cites

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Metadata

Authors
Dallas, F. R. B. O., & Orrenius, P. M.
Affiliations
Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas (US)
Corresponding author
Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas
Venue
Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, Working Papers
Published
2017
Volume
2017
Issue
1704
OpenAlex
W2610700791
Cited by
32
References
4
Citations by year
2026: 1 · 2025: 3 · 2024: 6 · 2023: 1 · 2022: 7 · 2021: 5 · 2020: 1 · 2019: 4 · 2018: 3
FWCI
5.55
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, Working Papers (publishedVersion)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Migration and Labor Dynamics
  • Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Migration, Refugees, and Integration
  • Social Sciences › Economics, Econometrics and Finance › Economics and Econometrics › Economic and Fiscal Studies
Keywords
immigration, fiscal impact of immigration, national defense, interest on public debt, highly educated immigrants, tax contribution, public benefit, National Academies report

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This page
CoChat. (2026). Citation check: New Findings on the Fiscal Impact of Immigration in the United States. https://app.cochat.ai/papers/10.24149/wp1704
The paper
Dallas, F. R. B. O., & Orrenius, P. M. (2017). New Findings on the Fiscal Impact of Immigration in the United States. Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, Working Papers. https://doi.org/10.24149/wp1704