Washington, D.C. — Today, as the country celebrates the third anniversary of President Barack Obama’s announcement of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, program, the Center for American Progress released new analysis showing the impact that all deferred action programs—including the Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents, or DAPA, program and the expansion of the 2012 DACA program—will have on state gross domestic product, gains in income, and job creation over 10 years in 37 states and Washington D.C.
The analysis is accompanied by an interactive map containing detailed information for 37 states and Washington D.C.
“Deferred action will produce significant and much-needed economic benefits for individual states. Our states and localities will do better when their residents are given a chance to realize their full potential and contribute even more to the state’s growth,” said Silva Mathema, Policy Analyst at the Center for American Progress and author of the analysis.
Since November 2014, millions of Americans, families, and immigration advocates continue to wait for the implementation of the DAPA program and the expansion of DACA. Despite conclusive evidence regarding the economic and social benefits of implementing these programs, including CAP’s recent report, “Assessing the Economic Impacts of Granting Deferred Action Through DACA and DAPA,” these programs remain on hold due to a legal battle in the federal courts filed by states that are undermining their own fiscal interests.
For example, in Texas, implementation of the deferred action directives would result in a cumulative increase in GDP of $38.3 billion, with a $17.6 billion increase in income for all state residents, and an increase of 4,800 jobs per year. In California, given the DAPA and DACA eligible population is 1,522,000, the cumulative increase in GDP would be of $75.8 billion, with a $39.3 billion increase in income for all state residents, and the creation of 9,500 jobs on average every year.
Read more and explore the interactive here.
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