The Social Contract
Spring 1993
201
In previous issues of The Social Contract, and also in Barbara McCarthy's report on
page 174, the staggering costs of immigrants to local governments are documented. This
article focuses on what can be dome specifically in one state to make some reductions.
Lance Izumi is director of the Golden State Center for Policy Studies at the Claremont
Institute, Sacramento, CA; Alan Nelson is a former commissioner of the Immigration and
Naturalization Service, now residing in Sacramento.
How California Can Lead the Way
Against Illegal Immigration
By Lance Izumi and Alan Nelson
In a 1992 Roper Poll, 86 percent of Americans
said that illegal immigration is an important issue. Yet
with a few notable exceptions, our political leaders
have been silent on the issue. Why?
Part of the reason lies in the reluctance of many
of our leaders to violate the taboos of "political
correctness." According to the standards of this code,
law and common sense are no excuses for opposing
the growing tide of Mexicans flooding into California
each day. Thus Congressman Dana Rohrabacher and
others have found that standing against this tide
invites charges of racism in the liberal media.
In addition, state officials often dismiss illegal
immigration as a federal problem, saying that there is
little they can do about it. While it is true that border
control is a federal responsibility, there is a whole
range of actions that California can take on its own,
now, to discourage illegal immigration.
The root of the problem in California lies in the
incentives to illegal immigration which exist in the
state and which can be largely eliminated at the state
level. Below we list the most important areas in which
incentives exist and numerous specific reform
measures which should be taken.
RECOMMENDATIONS
In the Area of Government Benefits:
1. Implement the Systematic Alien Verification for
Entitlement computerized data system (SAVE) in
all state agencies that grant benefits.
The Immigration and Naturalization Service