Study: SB4 will damage Texas economy by driving immigrants out of the state
Austin, TX – A study by AngelouEconomics found that Texas Senate Bill 4, a discriminatory bill signed into law earlier this year, “will jeopardize Texas’ economic prosperity and the quality of life of its citizens”. The study, first reported by the Austin American Statesman, found that by driving immigrants away from the Lone Star State, SB4 would severely damage the state’s economy.
For a copy of the full study, click here.
Per a press release from AngelouEconomics:
“The report highlights the growing importance of undocumented workers as the state finds itself in the midst of a persistent, multi-year labor shortage. The construction, agriculture, and services industry would be impacted most by enforcement of SB4, since they are top employers of undocumented immigrants throughout Texas. Further, removing undocumented workers from their jobs would increase labor costs for Texas businesses, and consequently hurt Texas goods sold in global export markets.”
Below is an excerpt from Phillip Jankowski’s piece in the Statesman. To read the story in its entirety, click here.
The Angelou Economics study also argues that the state’s economy would take a hit if it lost the estimated 1.15 million undocumented workers in Texas.
It cites figures from a Business Roundtable study on immigration policies, which estimated that Texas would lose 875,000 jobs over a decade if most undocumented residents were removed from the state, creating disruptions in construction, agriculture and other industries. Over a decade that would translate into a $78 billion decline in the value of goods and services produced in Texas, the study said.
The loss of those workers and services could slow the recovery from Hurricane Harvey. A quarter of the state’s construction workers are undocumented, the Angelou Economic study said, and as it is now, nearly 70 percent of Texas contractors are having trouble filling some of their positions.
