Increase in Illegal Workers Reduces Wages, and Increases the Burden on Social Services

Since September 11, 2001, U.S. border patrols have increased significantly. Patrols have increased so much that the cost to cross illegally from Mexico into the US has increased to about $1,500 since 1995. This increase has had an unlikely effect: Workers who entered the US illegally are reluctant to try to cross back into Mexico during the winter, and therefore stay in the US permanently. In Stockton, California, workers cram into small apartments, sleeping wherever space is available.
This non-exodus has caused a drain on the social services provided by communities with high populations of illegal immigrants. …