Papers Please: Immigration, Enforcement, and Remmitances

Abstract

This research aims to analyze and present the economic reaction visible in immigrants, unauthorized or not, in Arizona during the period in which SB 1070, a law that allowed state police officers to stop and ask for proof of residency from anyone that the officers deemed to "have the appearance of an immigrant". To make the analysis on how this may have had economic implications in immigrants, an attempt to answer how remittance activity changes in immigrant communities in the context of a change in law enforcement jurisdiction, as seen by the SB. 1070 law enacted in Arizona is made. Immigrants participate almost exclusively in local economies, be this because of a function of relatedness or a feeling of safety. Policy and laws of this sort have the potential to reduce immigrant consumption and perhaps even out-migrate from fear of the increasingly hostile surroundings they find themselves in. If they are to reduce personal spending, local economies will see a downturn, resulting in marginal or stagnated growth. As well as economic changes, institutional mistrust may also see an increase, creating a void of use in institutions, signifying a misallocation, and waste of resources. This process of creating anti-immigratory policies, although lawful, and effective in their goal, have unintended consequences with social spillover generating harm to the general social welfare pool. I.Introduction Loss of jobs and stagnant wages have been historically attributed to immigrant influxes and the low cost labor they provide. We must also account for the existent language barrier between Americans and Mexican immigrants. This inability to immediately communicate imposes limits to interactions between both sides. This has created resentment towards immigrants throughout the nation, bringing about tense relationships in the general populace, without any true resolution to be expected soon. This has led to