Tipsheet

House Judiciary Hearing Highlights the Cost of Illegal Immigration to American Taxpayers

Madeline Leesman
Madeline Leesman  |  January 11, 2024 5:45 PM

In a House Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration Integrity, Security, and Enforcement hearing on Thursday, a panel of witnesses and Republican lawmakers  revealed how President Joe Biden’s open border policies have strained American taxpayers and put national security at risk.

In the hearing, Republican Rep. Wesley Hunt (TX) said that the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has an “entirely different standard” for illegal immigrants boarding flights in the U.S.  

“This is a line in the Tucson airport specially made for non-citizens,” Hunt said in his remarks while showing a graphic of the airport. 

“The sign says: ‘Non-U.S. citizens without passports enter here.’ Without passports. That is the tip of the iceberg,” he said, adding that they may go forward with no verification or photo ID. 

“You know what a valid form of ID is for an illegal alien, according to TSA, today? An arrest warrant…they can get on a plane with an arrest warrant,” Hunt added. “This is not only an assault on American citizens, but a grave threat to our national security.”

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“We also know, in the last two years, over 200 people on the terrorist watch list have been caught at the border that we know of…I fought for this country to keep those people out of our country to keep it safer,” he added.

House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan added that children have been suffering academically since the lockdowns implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic. And now, students in New York are being forced to work remotely so that illegal immigrants can be housed in their school.

Danyela Souza Egorov, a legal immigrant to the United States from Brazil, said that the illegal immigrants in New York City have had a “devastating” impact on its social services.

“Every day, I hear from my community concerns about the impact of this crisis in our schools,” she explained, adding that teachers are given very short notice about if they will receive an influx of students from another country. 

“Since 1990, no more than 45,000 people were granted asylum in the U.S. per year. But last year, there were 2.5 million border crossings,” she continued. “How many more services will low income New York citizens have to lose to finance this policy?” 

Manuel Mello III, the fire department chief in Eagle Pass, Texas, explained that it costs about $15,000 to $18,000 a day to respond to calls from the illegal immigrants.

A recent study released by the Center for Immigration Studies found that 59 percent of non-citizen households in the United States, which includes illegal immigrants, use one or more major welfare programs. 

“Illegal immigrants can receive welfare on behalf of U.S.-born children, and illegal immigrant children can receive school lunch/breakfast and WIC directly. A number of states provide Medicaid to some illegal adults and children, and a few provide SNAP. Several million illegal immigrants also have work authorization (e.g. DACA, TPS, and some asylum applicants) allowing receipt of the EITC,” the study added.