- WASHINGTON, DC -- In 1970,
nine percent of California's population was comprised of immigrants; by
2008 it was 27 percent. A new report from the Center for Immigration Studies
(CIS) finds that as a result of immigration, California now has the least-educated
labor force of any state. Historically, California was not a state with
a disproportionately large unskilled population, like Appalachia or parts
of the South. However, immigration has transformed the state. Absent a
change in immigration policy, other parts of the country may be transformed
in a similar fashion.
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- The report, A State Transformed: Immigration and the
New California,' is authored by Steven A. Camarota and Karen Jensenius.
Among the findings:
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- In 1970 California had the 7th most educated work force
of the 50 states in terms of the share of its workers who had completed
high school. By 2008, it ranked 50th, making it the least-educated state.
One in six workers in the state has not graduated high school.
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- The decline in education in California is large relative
to other states. The percentage of Californians who have completed high
school has increased since 1970; however, all other states made much more
progress in improving education levels. As a result, California has fallen
behind the rest of the country.
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- The large relative decline in education in California
is a direct result of immigration. Without immigrants, the share of California's
labor force that has completed high school would be above the national
average.
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- There is no indication that California will soon close
the educational gap. California ranks 35th in terms of the share of its
19-year-olds who have completed high school. Moreover, one-third of the
adult immigrants who settled in the state in 2007 and 2008 had not completed
high school, adding 91,000 new unskilled adults to the state.
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- In 1970, California was right at the national average
in terms of income inequality, ranking 25th in the nation. By 2008, it
was the 6th most unequal state in the country based on the commonly used
Gini coefficient, which measures how evenly income is distributed.
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- California's income distribution in 2008 was more unequal
than was Mississippi's in 1970.
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- While historical data on welfare are not available, we
can say that in 2008 California ranked 11th highest in terms of the share
of its households accessing at least one major welfare program and 8th
highest in terms of the share of the state's population without health
insurance.
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- The large share of California's adults who have very
little education is likely to strain social services and make it challenging
for the state to generate sufficient tax revenue to cover the demands for
services made by its large unskilled population.
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- Discussion. California is home to the high-tech and entertainment
industries, has one of the nation's largest tourism industries, and has
the most productive agricultural land in the country. Historically, it
was not a state with a disproportionately large unskilled population, unlike
Appalachia, parts of the American South, or the Rio Grande valley. Relative
to other states, it had one of the more educated labor forces in terms
of the share of workers who had completed high school. But today it is
the state with the largest share of its labor force that has not completed
high school.
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- Analysis of Census Bureau data through 2008 by the Center
for Immigration Studies shows this relative change is a direct result of
immigration. California has become a state with one of the most skewed
income distributions and it is among the states with high rates of welfare
use and lack of health insurance. Immigrants in the state are six times
more likely than natives not to have completed high school. While some
employers argue that a continuing stream of unskilled immigrant workers
is desirable, such a policy has consequences. Productivity, standard of
living, welfare use, health insurance coverage, and the tax base are heavily
impacted by education levels. The low level of educational attainment in
the state is likely to create significant challenges for California in
the foreseeable future.
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- The Center for Immigration Studies is an independent
research institution that examines the impact of immigration on the United
States.
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