New Americans in the Gem State

The Political and Economic Power of Immigrants, Latinos, and Asians in Idaho.

Immigrants and their children are growing shares of Idaho’s population and electorate.

• The foreign-born share of Idaho’s population rose from 2.9% in 1990 [1], to 5.0% in 2000 [1], to 5.9% in 2008 [2], according to the U.S. Census Bureau.  Idaho was home to 89,489 immigrants in 2008 [2].

• 31.3% of immigrants (or 28,023 people) in Idaho were naturalized U.S. citizens in 2008 [2]—meaning that they are eligible to vote.

• 4.7% (or 31,021) of registered voters in Idaho were “New Americans”—naturalized citizens or the U.S.-born children of immigrants who were raised during the current era of immigration from Latin America and Asia which began in 1965—according to an analysis of 2006 Census Bureau data by Rob Paral & Associates [3].

Nearly 1 in 9 Idahoans are Latino or Asian.

• The Latino share of Idaho’s population grew from 5.3% in 1990 [4], to 7.9% in 2000 [4], to 10.2% (or 155,429 people) in 2008 [2].  The Asian share of the population grew from 0.8% in 1990 [5], to 0.9% in 2000 [5], to 1.2% (or 18,286 people) in 2008 [2], according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

• Latinos accounted for 4.7% (or 30,000) of Idaho voters in the 2008 elections, and Asians 0.9% (6,000), according to the U.S. Census Bureau [6].

• In Idaho, more than four-in-five (or 84% of) children in immigrant families are U.S. citizens in 2007 [7], according to the Center for Social and Demographic Analysis at the University of Albany.

Latino and Asian entrepreneurs and consumers add billions of dollars and thousands of jobs to Idaho’s economy.

• The 2009 purchasing power of Latinos in Idaho totaled $2.5 billion—an increase of 527.4% since 1990. Asian buying power totaled $650.6 million—an increase of 477.4% since 1990, according to the Selig Center for Economic Growth [8] at the University of Georgia.

• Idaho’s 2,775 Latino-owned [9] businesses had sales and receipts of $351.8 million and employed 3,149 people in 2002, the last year for which data is available.  The state’s 1,111 Asian-owned [10] businesses had sales and receipts of $283.9 million and employed 2,837 people in 2002, according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s Survey of Business Owners.

Immigrants are integral to Idaho’s economy as workers and taxpayers.

• Immigrants comprised 7.2% of the state’s workforce in 2008 [2] (or 55,396 workers), according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

• Unauthorized immigrants comprised roughly 3.1% of the state’s workforce (or 25,000 workers) in 2008 [11], according to a report by the Pew Hispanic Center.

• If all unauthorized immigrants were removed from Idaho, the state would lose $428.8 million in economic activity, $190.4 million in gross state product, and approximately 3,060 jobs, even accounting for adequate market adjustment time, according to a report by the Perryman Group [12].

Immigrants are important to Idaho’s economy as students.

• Idaho’s 2,147 foreign students contributed $42.6 million to the state’s economy in tuition, fees, and living expenses for the 2008-2009 academic year, according to the NAFSA: Association of International Educators [13].

Naturalized citizens excel educationally.

• In Idaho, 24.6% of foreign-born persons who were naturalized U.S. citizens in 2008 [14] had a bachelor’s or higher degree, compared to 13.7% of noncitizens.  At the same time, only 27.6% of naturalized citizens lacked a high-school diploma, compared to 58.7% of noncitizens.

• The number of immigrants in Idaho with a college degree increased by 94.4% between 2000 and 2008, according to data [14] from the Migration Policy Institute.

• In Idaho, 74.5% of all children between the ages of 5 and 17 in families that spoke a language other than English at home also spoke English “very well” as of 2008 [14].

UPDATED: JULY 2010

Published On: Tue, Mar 16, 2010 | Download File [15]