WASHINGTON, D.C. — Ending Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) would cost the country billions, according to a Cato Institute study released today.
A repeal followed by deportation of all DACA recipients, who number about 740,000, would cost more than $60 billion, not counting an ensuing $280 billion hit to the American economy in the next decade, researchers found.
“For Donald Trump to begin his administration by issuing an executive order of his own that imposes a significant cost of the economy while doing little to fix the underlying problems that he identifies with illegal immigration would not only be self-defeating, but it would send a signal that the executive overreach of the Obama Administration has become the status quo,” researcher Ike Brannon, a visiting fellow at Cato and president of Capital Policy Analytics, writes in an op-ed today.
“American workers are benefiting from DACA recipients’ work and education, and recipients are generating revenue that helps our economy,” said Ali Noorani, Executive Director of the National Immigration Forum. “President-elect Trump should see that DACA is a good deal for the American worker. He should preserve the program and urge Congress to take the opportunity to pursue bipartisan solutions that allow these contributions to continue and expand.”