New Americans in the Silver State

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

Nearly 15% of registered voters in Nevada are immigrants or the children of immigrants.

• The foreign-born share of Nevada’s population rose from 8.7% in 1990 [1], to 15.8% in 2000 [1], to 18.9% in 2008 [2], according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Nevada was home to 490,717 immigrants in 2008 [2], which is roughly equal to the total population of Atlanta, Georgia [3].

• 36.8% of immigrants in Nevada (or 180,554 people) were naturalized U.S. citizens in 2008 [2]—meaning that they are eligible to vote.

• 14.8% (or 133,890) of all registered voters in Nevada are “New Americans”—naturalized citizens or the U.S.-born children of immigrants who were raised during the current era of large-scale immigration from Latin America and Asia which began in 1965—according to an analysis of 2006 Census Bureau data by Rob Paral & Associates [4].

Latinos make up one quarter of all Nevadans—and they vote.

• The Latino share of Nevada’s population grew from 10.4% in 1990 [5], to 19.7% in 2000 [5], to 25.7% (or 668,243 people) in 2008 [2].  The Asian share of the population grew from 2.9% in 1990 [6], to 4.5% in 2000 [6], to 6.0% (or 156,010 people) in 2008 [2], according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

• Latinos comprised 11.6% (or 119,000) of Nevada voters in the 2008 elections, and Asians 3.4% (or 35,000), according to the U.S. Census Bureau [7].  The numbers of Latino and Asian voters exceeded Barack Obama’s margin of victory over John McCain (120,909 votes [8]) in this electoral battleground state.

• In Nevada, nearly three-fifths (or 58%) of the 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.

Immigrants are essential to Nevada’s economy as workers and taxpayers.

• Immigrants comprised 24.1% of the state’s workforce in 2008 [10] (or 333,302 workers), according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

• Latino immigrants in Nevada paid roughly $2.6 billion in federal taxes and $1.6 billion in state and local taxes (including $500 million in sales taxes) in 2005.  The money that Latino immigrants “earn and spend in Nevada accounts for about 25% of the State’s Gross State Product,” and Latino immigrant “employment, income and spending results in the creation of 108,380 jobs in Nevada,” according to a 2007 report [11] from the Progressive Leadership Alliance of Nevada.

• Latino immigrants comprised about 16% of the state’s entire workforce in 2005, and an even higher share in select industries: 81% of the agricultural workforce, 47% of the construction and mining workforce, and 22% of the entertainment and tourist services workforce, according to a 2007 report [11] from the Progressive Leadership Alliance of Nevada.

Unauthorized immigrants are integral to Nevada’s economy as workers and consumers.

• Unauthorized immigrants comprised 12.2% of the state’s workforce in 2008 [12] (or 170,000 workers), according to a report by the Pew Hispanic Center.

• If all unauthorized immigrants were removed from Nevada, the state would lose $9.7 billion in economic activity, $4.3 billion in gross state product, and approximately 45,533 jobs, even accounting for adequate market adjustment time, according to a report by the Perryman Group [13].

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

• The 2009 purchasing power of Nevada’s Latinos totaled $14.3 billion—an increase of 955.3% since 1990.  Asian buying power totaled $6.1 billion—an increase of 980.7% since 1990, according to the Selig Center for Economic Growth [14] at the University of Georgia.

• Nevada’s 9,741 Latino-owned [15] businesses had sales and receipts of $1.6 billion and employed 12,874 people in 2002, the last year for which data is available.  The state’s 8,872 Asian-owned [16] businesses had sales and receipts of $2 billion and employed 12,713 people in 2002, according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s Survey of Business Owners.

Immigrants are important to Nevada’s economy as students.

• Nevada’s 3,006 foreign students contributed $70.5 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 [17].

Naturalized citizens excel educationally.

• In Nevada, 27.3% of foreign-born persons who were naturalized U.S. citizens in 2008 [18] had a bachelor’s or higher degree, compared to 13.2% of noncitizens.  At the same time, only 22.6% of naturalized citizens lacked a high-school diploma, compared to 46.5% of noncitizens.

• The number of immigrants in Nevada with a college degree increased by 136.7% between 2000 and 2008, according to data [18] from the Migration Policy Institute.

• In Nevada, 74.1% 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 [18].

UPDATED: JULY 2010

Published On: Thu, Jul 30, 2009 | Download File [19]