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Book Review: The Economic Consequences of Immigration

Julian Simon has written a timely and important contribution to the ongoing debate over U.S. immigration policy. He unrelentinglyargues that increasing the number of immigrants allowed into the United States would raise the economic welfare ofnatives, at least for politically realistic increases in the flow ofimmigrants. To support his argument, Simon marshals economic theory, reasoned speculation and empirical evidence to evaluate a wide array ofpotential consequences due to immigration. The book critically reviews the findings of existing studies and also presents original research conducted by Simon and his colleagues. Although he focuses on the United States, especially when it comes to making specific policy recommendations, Simon also summarizes evidence from other countries when it is available. A barrage oftables, graphs and statistics make the text information but at times difficult to read, and several tersely written technical passages are likely to be incomprehensible to noneconomists. Simon is particularly effective at debunking popular misconceptions about U.S. immigrants. Thus, he demonstrates that recent flows of legal immigrants are quite modest in comparison to previous waves, especially after accounting for emigration and the growth that has occurred in the native population which must absorb these new arrivals. Furthermore, adding in even the highest defensible estimates of illegal immigration does not change this conclusion. Simon also shows that, because immigrants tend to arrive at the beginning of their working lives, they lighten rather than strain the fiscal burden of natives. Illegal immigrants are particularly beneficial to the public coffers, since they unavoidably pay many taxes, but are often reluctant to apply for government services and transfer programs for fear of being apprehended and deported. Perhaps more surprising is the fact that a large and growing body of empirical