Immigration works: let 'em in.

• Author: Doherty, Brian
• Position: Citings - Immigration quotas - Brief article

Since the 1960s, the United States has seen a surge in immigration, a trend responsible for about half of the nation's population growth. But restrictive quotas keep a lid on the number of immigrants who can legally come to the country and work.

In a September 2013 study for the Independent Institute, Texas Tech economist Benjamin Powell and George Mason University economics researcher Zachary Gochenour find that the U.S. holds the line at around 300,000 new workers each year. America's immigration quotas are higher than those of other advanced economies yet not high enough for the labor market to smoothly react to demand. The application quota for the largest worker category was met in just five days in 2013. Not...