New Americans in the Old Dominion State

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

More than 1 in 10 Virginians are immigrants.

• The foreign-born share of Virginia’s population rose from 5.0% in 1990 [1], to 8.1% in 2000 [1], to 10.2% in 2008 [2], according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Virginia was home to 795,712 immigrants in 2008 [2], which is more than the total population of Austin, Texas [3].

• 45.3% of immigrants (or 360,108 people) in Virginia were naturalized U.S. citizens in 2008 [2]—meaning that they are eligible to vote. 

• 6.4% of all registered voters in Virginia are “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 [4].

1 in 9 Virginians are Latino or Asian—and they vote.

• The Latino share of Virginia’s population grew from 2.6% in 1990 [5], to 4.7% in 2000 [5], to 6.8% (or 528,298 people) in 2008 [2]. The Asian share of the population grew from 2.5% in 1990 [6], to 3.7% in 2000 [6], to 4.8% (or 372,916 people) in 2008 [2], according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

• Latinos comprised 2.0% (or 74,000) of Virginia voters in the 2008 elections, and Asians 3.7% (or 136,000), according to the U.S. Census Bureau [7].  The number of Latino and Asian voters roughly equaled the margin of victory (234,527 votes [8]) by which Barack Obama defeated John McCain in Virginia.

• In Virginia, more than four-in-five (or 84% of) children in immigrant families were U.S. citizens in 2007 [9], according to the Center for Social and Demographic Analysis at the University of Albany.

Unauthorized immigrants contribute to Virginia’s economy.

• Unauthorized immigrants in Virginia paid between $260 million and $311 million in taxes in 2007 [10], including:

• $145 million to $174 million in state income, excise, and property taxes
• $93 million to $111 million in Social Security taxes
• $22 million to $26 million in Medicare taxes

• In addition, Virginia employers paid between $119 million and $142 million in taxes on behalf of unauthorized workers in 2007 [10], including:

• $93 million to $111 million in Social Security taxes
• $22 million to $26 million in Medicare taxes
• $4 million to $5 million in state unemployment insurance taxes

• The state’s unauthorized population, which earned between $2.6 billion and $3.1 billion in 2007 [10], even after accounting for remittances sent back to their home countries, uses their income to purchase Virginia’s goods and services.

Immigrants are essential to Virginia’s economy as workers.

• Immigrants comprised 13.3% of the state’s workforce (or 560,300 workers) in 2008 [2], according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

• If all unauthorized immigrants were removed from Virginia, the state would lose $11.2 billion in economic activity, $5.5 billion in gross state product, and approximately 62,918 jobs, even accounting for adequate market adjustment time, according to a report by the Perryman Group [11].

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

• The 2009 purchasing power of Virginia’s Latinos totaled $14.4 billion—an increase of 560.3% since 1990.  Asian buying power totaled $14.8 billion—an increase of 470.3% since 1990, according to the Selig Center for Economic Growth [12] at the University of Georgia.

• Virginia’s 30,457 Asian-owned [13] businesses had sales and receipts of $7.7 billion and employed 70,026 people in 2002, the last year for which data is available.  The state’s 18,987 Latino-owned [14] businesses had sales and receipts of $3.4 billion and employed 29,769 people in 2002, according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2002 Survey of Business Owners.

Immigrants are integral to Virginia’s economy as students.

• Virginia’s 14,606 foreign students contributed $337.9 million to the state’s economy in tuition, fees, and living expenses for the 2008-2009 academic year, according to NAFSA: Association of International Educators [15].

Naturalized citizens excel educationally.

• In Virginia, 44.2% of foreign-born persons who were naturalized U.S. citizens in 2008 [16] had a bachelor’s or higher degree, compared to 34.6% of noncitizens.  At the same time, only 13.7% of naturalized citizens lacked a high-school diploma, compared to 29.9% of noncitizens.

• The number of immigrants in Virginia with a college degree increased by 59.7% between 2000 and 2008, according to data [16] from the Migration Policy Institute.

• 39.3% of Virginia’s foreign-born population age 25 and older had a bachelor’s or higher degree in 2008 [16], compared to 32.9% of native-born persons age 25 and older.

• In Virginia, 77.1% 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 [16].

UPDATED: JULY 2010

Published On: Tue, Aug 11, 2009 | Download File [17]