Fear and the Safety Net: Evidence from Secure Communities

Abstract

This paper studies how changes in deportation fear induced by the roll-out of Secure Communities (SC), a far-reaching immigration enforcement program, affected the demand for safety net programs in the United States. We estimate the spillover effect of SC on the take-up of federal means-tested programs by Hispanic citizens, who are not themselves eligible for removal. We find significant declines in SNAP and SSI enrollment, particularly among mixed-citizenship status households. The response is muted for Hispanic households residing in sanctuary cities. Our results are most consistent with network effects that perpetuate fear rather than lack of benefit information or stigma.

Do Human Capital Decisions Respond to the Returns to Education? Evidence from DACA

“…Sample is composed of foreign born ages 14-18 who immigrated by age 10 and by 2007. Data on Secure Community activation dates by county were provided by Alsan and Yang (2018). Notes: This table shows the sensitivity of the difference-in-difference estimates of the impact of DACA on schooling outcomes of eligible youth, when using different methods to account for differential linear trends by eligibility.…”

“…Among these program, Secure Communities stands out as a primary threat to identification as it experienced large expansions that coincided with DACA and influenced take-up of public assistance (e.g. Alsan and Yang, 2018). 24 To address this potential confound, we control for the county-by-year rollout of Secure Communities using data from Alsan and Yang (2018), shown in Appendix Figure A.5.…”

“…Alsan and Yang, 2018). 24 To address this potential confound, we control for the county-by-year rollout of Secure Communities using data from Alsan and Yang (2018), shown in Appendix Figure A.5. Our estimates are unaffected by this control.…”

Forgoing Food Assistance out of Fear: Simulating the Child Poverty Impact of a Making SNAP a Legal Liability for Immigrants

“…Legal immigrants are eligible for SNAP if they have lived in the United States for five years, receive disability-related assistance, or are children under 18. SNAP applications routinely ask for names and Social Security numbers of all persons in the household applying for benefits; some states also ask for date of entry, country of origin, alien registration number, and citizenship status of each person in the household (Alsan and Yang 2018). Using this information, states verify the immigration status of each household member.…”

“…Recent surveys show that a large share of immigrants believe that receiving any kind of public benefit could affect their immigration status. According to the 2017 UCLA Luskin Quality of Life Index Survey, more than a third of residents in Los Angeles County report being concerned that they, a friend, or family member could be deported (Alsan and Yang 2018). Of those with such a concern, 80 percent report that they, a friend, or family member would be at greater risk of being deported by enrolling in a government health, education, or housing program.…”