"Birth" of Another Taxpayer Burden.

• Author: Telford, Marguerite
• Position: IMMIGRATION POLICY

A report by the Center for Immigration Studies finds that one in five children born in the U.S. has an immigrant mother. Based on an analysis of Census Bureau data, it is estimated that, nationally, one in 13 births is to an illegal immigrant, totaling 300,000 births a year. One in eight births is to a legal immigrant. In addition, more than half of the births to immigrants (legal and illegal) are paid for by taxpayers.

"The enormous number of births to legal and illegal immigrants may hinder assimilation as children from immigrant families will largely interact with only each other," says report coauthor Steven Camarota, director of Research. He also points out that "paying for so many births to immigrant mothers may be appropriate, but the large share who can't provide for themselves without the help of American taxpayers raises serious questions about whether our current immigration system makes sense."

* The 297,000 births per year to illegal immigrants are more than the total number of births to all mothers in any state except California and Texas. They also are more than the total number of births in 16 states combined, plus the District of Columbia.

* The estimated 28,000 births to illegal immigrants in just the Los Angeles, Calif., metro area are more than the total number of births in any of 14 states or the District of Columbia.

* Fifty-four percent of births to immigrants (legal and illegal) are entirely or largely paid for by taxpayers because the mother is on Medicaid or uninsured, including 67% among illegal immigrants.

* Of all births likely paid for by taxpayers, about one in four (429,000) was to an immigrant (legal or illegal). Illegal immigrants account for 11% (198,000) of all publicly funded births, and legal immigrants are another 13% (231,000).

* The estimated cost to taxpayers for births to immigrants (legal and illegal) is roughly $5,300,000,000--2,400,000,000 of which is for illegal immigrants.

* Although immigration adds to the number of births, it raises the nation's overall birth rate by only four percent, as immigrant fertility is not that much higher than that of...