Thread: CBO Estimate of Senate Amnesty Grossly Understated

August 22, 2006

CBO Estimate of Senate Amnesty Grossly Understated, Asserts FAIR

Washington, DC -- The estimate by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), released Friday, that the Senate-passed guest worker amnesty bill (S. 2611) would cost the country a net amount of $127 billion over the next ten years is misleading and grossly underestimates the real fiscal impact, contends the Federation from American Immigration Reform (FAIR). According to FAIR, the CBO estimate includes only the fiscal impact at the federal level, but ignores the much greater impact S. 2611 would have on state and local governments.

An estimate of the fiscal impact at the local level by FAIR identifies a cost of $70 billion per year by 2020, primarily for education and health care. The $70 billion annual price tag does not include a number of other likely cost increases for programs such as assisted housing and other social welfare programs.

“The formidable cost estimate by the CBO of the Senate amnesty bill is only the tip of the iceberg,” commented FAIR president Dan Stein. “The full impact of this disastrous legislation won’t begin to be felt for another decade. Once millions of illegal aliens become eligible for all government programs, benefits and services, the fiscal impact on local governments are likely to be catastrophic.”

Supporters of the Senate-passed amnesty/guest worker bill are attempting to lessen the impact of the CBO projection by noting that the enforcement-only bill passed by the House of Representatives (H.R. 4437) also comes with a hefty price tag. While that is true, because the House bill does not include amnesty and expanded admission of low-wage workers, these would be one-time-only expenditures, not an ever expanding liability. The enforcement measures in the House bill, if implemented, would result in reduced state and local costs as the illegal alien population began to decrease.

“As government services and programs are being cut, and crippling debts are being bequeathed to future generations of Americans, the idea of expending unnecessary billions of tax dollars to reward millions of people who broke our laws is anathema to most Americans,” said Stein. “But the American public must be aware that their liability under the Senate bill only begins with the $127 billion. The Senate amnesty amounts to a running tab for government provided services and benefits that will have to be paid for largely at the local level. American taxpayers don’t much care which pocket will be picked to pay for this special interest driven amnesty proposal. Whether it’s federal dollars or local dollars, the bottom line is that it is countless billions of their money that would have to pay for this amnesty proposal for generations to come.”

I think I'm going to be sick, again!