New Americans in Arizona

The Political and Economic Power of Immigrants, Latinos, and Asians in the Grand Canyon State (Updated January 2012)

Download the Infographic

Dowload the Fact Sheet (2010 Census Data)

Dowload the Previous Fact Sheet (2008 Census Data)

Immigrants and their children are growing shares of Arizona’s population and electorate.

• The foreign-born share of Arizona’s population rose from 7.6% in 1990, to 12.8% in 2000, to 13.4% in 2010, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Arizona was home to 856,663 immigrants in 2010, which is more than the population of San Francisco, California.

• 36.3% of immigrants (or 310,835 people) in Arizona were naturalized U.S. citizens in 2010—meaning that they are eligible to vote.

• 9.7% (or 278,761) of all registered voters in Arizona were “New Americans”—naturalized citizens or the U.S.-born children of immigrants who were raised during the current era of immigration from Latin America and Asia which began in 1965—according to an analysis of 2008 Census Bureau data by Rob Paral & Associates.

Nearly one-third of Arizonans are Latino or Asian.

• The Latino share of Arizona’s population grew from 18.8% in 1990, to 25.3% in 2000, to 29.8% (or 1,911,294 people) in 2010. The Asian share of the population grew from 1.4% in 1990, to 1.8% in 2000, to 2.7% (or 173,171 people) in 2010, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

• Latinos comprised 11.7% (or 291,000) of Arizona voters in the 2008 elections, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
• In Arizona, 87.3% of children with immigrant parents were U.S. citizens in 2009, according to the Urban Institute.
• In 2009, 90.5% of children in Asian families in Arizona were U.S. citizens, as were 92.5% of children in Latino families.

Immigrant, Latino, and Asian entrepreneurs and consumers add billions of dollars and tens-of-thousands of jobs to Arizona’s economy.

• The 2004 consumer spending power of immigrant-headed households in Arizona totaled $10.5 billion, according to a 2008 study by the Udall Center for Studies in Public Policy at the University of Arizona. This spending:

• Supported approximately 66,500 full-time jobs.
• Accounted for $10.2 billion in state economic output.
• Generated tax revenues of roughly $776 million, consisting of $362 million in sales taxes, $328 million in business taxes, and $85 million in personal taxes.

• The 2010 purchasing power of Arizona’s Latinos totaled $33.9 billion—an increase of 528.7% since 1990. Asian buying power totaled $6.5 billion—an increase of 768.3% since 1990, according to the Selig Center for Economic Growth at the University of Arizona.

• Arizona’s 52,667 Latino-owned businesses had sales and receipts of $8 billion and employed 54,530 people in 2007, the last year for which data is available. The state’s 16,333 Asian-owned businesses had sales and receipts of $4.5 billion and employed 31,339 people in 2007, according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s Survey of Business Owners.

Immigrants are integral to Arizona’s economy as workers.

• Immigrants comprised 16.6% of the state’s workforce in 2010 (or 503,628 workers), according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

• Immigrants accounted for 15% of total economic output in the Phoenix metropolitan area as of 2007, according to a study by the Fiscal Policy Institute. In fact, “immigrants contribute to the economy in direct relation to their share of the population. The economy of metro areas grows in tandem with the immigrant share of the labor force.”

• Unauthorized immigrants comprised 7.4% of the state’s workforce (or 230,000 workers) in 2010, according to a report by the Pew Hispanic Center.

• The total economic output attributable to Arizona’s immigrant workers was $44 billion in 2004, which sustained roughly 400,000 full-time jobs, according to a 2008 study by the Udall Center for Studies in Public Policy.

• Immigrant workers contributed $2.4 billion in state tax revenue in 2004, consisting of $1 billion in sales taxes, $967 million in business taxes, and $367 million in personal taxes, according to the same study.

Unauthorized immigrants pay taxes.

• Unauthorized immigrants in Arizona paid $443.2 million in state and local taxes in 2010, according to data from the Institute for Taxation and Economic Policy, which includes:

• $38.9 million in state income taxes.
• $45.7 million in property taxes.
• $348.7 million in sales taxes.

• If all unauthorized immigrants were removed from Arizona, the state would lose $48.8 billion in economic activity, decrease total employment by 17.2%, and eliminate 581,000 million jobs, according to a study by Dr. Raul Hinojosa-Ojeda and Marshall Fitz. If unauthorized immigrants in Arizona were legalized, it would add 261,000 jobs to the economy, increase labor income by $5.6 billion, and increase tax revenues by $1.6 billion.

Immigrants are integral to Arizona’s economy as students.

• Arizona’s 10,676 foreign students contributed $243 million to the state’s economy in tuition, fees, and living expenses for the 2009-2010 academic year, according to NAFSA: Association of International Educators.

Naturalized citizens excel educationally.

• In Arizona, 25.4% of foreign-born persons who were naturalized U.S. citizens in 2009 had a bachelor’s or higher degree, compared to 14.1% of noncitizens. At the same time, only 25.4% of naturalized citizens lacked a high-school diploma, compared to 48.8% of noncitizens.

• The number of immigrants in Arizona with a college degree increased by 86.6% between 2000 and 2009, according to data from the Migration Policy Institute.

• In Arizona, 79.5% of children with immigrant parents were considered “English proficient” as of 2009, according to data from the Urban Institute.

The English proficiency rate among Asian children in Arizona was 91.6%, while for Latino children it was 85.1%, as of 2009.

Published On: Wed, Jan 11, 2012 | Download File