Number of Mexicans gaining U.S. citizenship grew 50% in 2007
California and Texas saw the biggest increases. Overall naturalization declined by 6%.

By Teresa Watanabe, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
2:11 PM PDT, July 10, 2008

The number of Mexicans who became U.S. citizens in 2007 increased 50% over the previous year -- with California and Texas seeing the largest increases -- even as the overall number of immigrants becoming naturalized citizens declined.

The jump was attributed in large part to anticipated increases in application fees and efforts by Spanish-language media and grass-roots organizations to encourage eligible residents to apply for U.S. citizenship, according to a report issued today by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

The number of Mexicans who became citizens in 2007 increased from 83,000 to 122,000 at a time when the overall number of those who were naturalized decreased by 6%, the report found.

In California, the number of those who were naturalized last year increased from 152,000 to 181,000, followed by Texas, which went from 37,000 to 53,000, according to the report.

At the same time, the number of citizenship applications filed with the office of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services doubled from 730,000 to 1.3 million last year, the report found. Citizenship applications pending a decision increased from 470,000 to 1.1 million.

teresa.watanabe@latimes.com


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