Illegal immigrants burn gas, drive up rent costs
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Your views: letter to Gainesville Times newspaper
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LETTER

As we engage in discussion about the impact of illegal immigration upon our lives, there are hidden impacts that must also be considered. How many of the now 15 million illegals are driving cars and how much does that contribute to the supposed shortage we are currently experiencing? Would those millions of extra gallons help to reduce the cost of the gasoline we are paying so much for?

Let us look a little closer to home. Has anyone noticed the cost of renting a home these days? Besides the difficulty in finding affordable housing, the current rental rate is so high because of shortages in the housing market for rental property. This shortage is due in part to the many illegal residents currently crowding into the available homes.

Landlords have no qualms asking ridiculously high rates for their properties because they know that there is a good chance there will be many more working adults living there than your normal two-parent home.

Estimates place the illegal population of the Gainesville area at somewhere around 30,000 people. Now these are not homeowners but renters, and it is not hard to guess where they are. Look in the yard at the end of the work day to see how many cars are parking overnight versus how many were there during the day.

How does an illegal alien get car insurance? If they don't have insurance and get in a wreck, who has to pay to repair our cars? What happens to our insurance rates then?

How much of the money they are earning in this community goes back to Mexico? Isn't that a blow to the local economy? Those dollars are not being spent here. There is no sales tax on goods not purchased.

Now, I understand everyone wants a better life for their families, but to say all of us must help pay for that life is just plain wrong. Follow the steps to become a real legal immigrant and I welcome you with open arms.

Lee Marchetta

Gainesville

Originally published Saturday, June 16, 2007