Illegal Immigration Down Sharply In The U.S.

Illegal immigration is sharply down in California and in the rest of the country, according to a study by the Pew Hispanic Center. California’s share of the country’s estimated 11.1 million undocumented persons went from 42% in 1990 to 23% today.

The number of illegal immigrants living in the U.S. dropped to 11.1 million in 2009 from a peak of 12 million in 2007 – what the study’s researchers called the “first significant reversal” in illegal immigrant growth over the last two decades.

Fewer illegal immigrants came to the U.S. every year between 2007 and 2009 than in the years in the first half of the decade, the study found. About 300,000 illegal immigrants entered the U.S. each year between 2007 and 2009, a drop from the 850,000 new unauthorized immigrants that entered each year between 2000 and 2005.

The recession and increased border security are cited as reasons for the decline.

The study echoes the findings of a report issued earlier this year by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, which concluded that illegal immigration had declined by nearly 1 million between 2008 and 2009. This was the second consecutive year of decline and sharpest decrease in at least three decades.

By: Alan

Alan Colmes is the publisher of Liberaland.