Frequently Requested Statistics (Migration Policy Institute)

This resource guide, produced by the Migration Policy Institute, provides frequently requested statistics on immigrants and immigration in the United States and draws upon a number of resources, including  the U.S. Census Bureau's 2014 American Community Survey (ACS), 2014 Current Population Survey (CPS), Migration Policy Institute, U.S Department of Homeland Security and others.

• Frequently Requested Statistics on Immigrants and Immigration in the United States, Migration Policy Institute (Feb 2020).

State Immigration Data Profiles (Migration Policy Institute)

Review U.S. Census data on U.S. immigrants and the native born based on: Demographics (size of population, age, country of birth, naturalization trends, children in immigrant families); Language and education (rates of limited English proficiency, levels of educational attainment, languages spoken at home by English proficiency); Workforce (immigrants' share among all workers, top occupations and industries, skill underutilization of college-educated immigrants); Income (median incomes, income distributions, poverty rates)

• State Data Profiles, Migration Policy Institute (last visited Sept 4, 2020).

Unauthorized Immigrant Population Profiles (Migration Policy Institute)

"Learn about the estimated 11 million unauthorized immigrants living in the United States. Where do they live? When did they arrive in the United States, and from which origin countries? What are their levels of education, top industries of employment, incomes, parental and marital status, health care coverage, and more? And how many are potentially eligible for relief from deportation via deferred action? This unique data tool, using 2009-2013 American Community Survey data, provides detailed sociodemographic profiles for the United States, 41 states (plus the District of Columbia), and 117 counties with the largest unauthorized populations. And estimates of populations eligible for deferred action and their share of the overall unauthorized population are offered for 41 states as well as for the 138 counties with the largest unauthorized populations"

• Unauthorized Immigrant Population Profiles, Migration Policy Institute (last visited, Sept. 4, 2020).

5 Facts About Illegal Immigration (Pew Research Center)

This brief guide, produced by the Pew Research Center, offers a snapshot of unauthorized migration to the United States.  According to Pew: "[t]he number of unauthorized immigrants in the U.S. has stabilized in recent years after decades of rapid growth. But the origin countries of unauthorized immigrants have shifted, with the number from Mexico declining since 2009 and the number from elsewhere rising, according to the latest Pew Research Center estimates."

• Jens Manuel Krogstad, Jeffrey S. Passel and D’vera Cohn, 5 facts about illegal immigration in the U.S. Pew Research Center (Nov. 6, 2016).

Virginia Deparment of Education Memo on Students with Immigration Status

Virginia DOE Memorandum

The Increasingly Diverse United States of America (Wa. Po.)

This Washington Post report highlights the increasingly diverse composition of U.S. communities. Although diversity varies from regions, the overall picture indicates that the country will continue to diversify overall.   

• Dan Keating and Laris Karklis, The increasingly diverse United States of America, Washington Post (Nov. 25, 2016).

Booklet - Legal Issues for School Districts

This booklet provides responses to frequently asked questions on the topic of access to education for primary and secondary school aged undocumented children.  Topics include secondary benefits such as extracurricular activities, inquiring about immigration status, reporting undocumented children to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and other educational services from local agencies.

• The National School Boards Association (NSBA) and The National Education Association (NEA), Legal Issues for School Districts Related to the Education of Undocumented Children (2009).

Report - Georgetown Human Rights Institute

A year-long research project conducted by Georgetown Law Human Rights Institute and Women’s Refugee Commission, which examines how school districts in four states (Florida, New York, North Carolina and Texas) have fared in ensuring access to public school education for undocumented children. Researchers conclude that barriers to enrollment still exist. For example, the Report finds that undocumented children, who may fulfill all documentation requirements for enrollment, are still discouraged to do so through “testing, grade placement, and prospects of graduation.” The Report also looks at the impact of ICE raids on undocumented children seeking public school education. According to researchers, undocumented children report increased anxiety at the prospects of returning home from a day at school to find that their parents have gone missing. The Report offers several key recommendations to federal, state and local officials.

• Ensuring Every Undocumented Student Succeeds: A Report on Access to Public Education for Undocumented Children, Georgetown Law Human Rights Institute (April 11, 2016).
   
• See, Garance Burke, Report: immigrant students blocked from enrolling in school, AP.com (April 11, 2016).

New York AG Investigation Into School District Enrollment Barriers for Immigrant Children

Beginning in 2014, the New York Attorney General's office, in conjunction with the state's Department of Education, conducted a joint review of over twenty school district’s policies and procedures for enrolling undocumented students.  The investigation began as a result of reports and complaints to the attorney general’s office regarding unlawful inquiries into students’ and/or parents’ immigration status. The investigation determined that twenty school districts throughout the state had violated the law, by requiring information which would likely hinder or effect enrollment of undocumented students, in violation of the U.S Supreme Court’s decision in Plyler v. Doe.  The investigation also found that school districts diverted students with limited English proficiency into alternative programs that provided English as a Second Language classes, or provided minimal preparation for the high school equivalency exam, but could not result in a high school diploma. As a result of the investigation, school districts entered into assurances of discontinuance with the attorney general, agreeing to amend enrollment materials by removing any “inquiries into citizenship, immigration status, or any other inquiries that might chill or discourage student enrollment on the basis of immigration status.”

• Press Release, New York Attorney General, A.G. Schneiderman Announces Settlement Of Lawsuit Against Utica City School District To Ensure Equal Educational Opportunities For Immigrant And Refugee Students, (July 21, 2016).
   
• Press Release, New York Attorney General, A.G. Schneiderman Secures Agreement with Westbury Union Free School District to Ensure Equal Educational Opportunities for Students Regardless of Immigration Status (Feb. 29, 2016).
   
• Press Release, New York Attorney General, A.G. Schneiderman Secures Agreements With Twenty School Districts To Ensure Equal Educational Opportunities For Students Regardless Of Immigration Status, (February 19, 2015).

Plyler v. Doe, 457 U.S. 202 (1982).

Landmark Supreme Court case which held that states cannot deny or obstruct undocumented school-age children from enrolling in a public school on the basis of their immigration status. The Court invalidated an amendment to Texas Education Law which denied state funding to schools educating undocumented children and required those schools to deny enrollment to such individuals. In a 5-4 decision, the Court found that although the students were not "legally admitted" to the United States, they were still afforded protection under the Fourteenth Amendment and the state of Texas could not demonstrate a compelling interest for the regulation.

• Supreme Court Opinion
   
• See, Plyler v. Doe, Oyez (last visited Nov. 23, 2016).
   
• See, Public Education for Immigrant Students: Understanding Plyler v. Doe, American Immigration Council (Oct. 24, 2012).
   
• See, Emma Chadband, After 30 Years, Plyler v. Doe Legacy Under Attack, NEAToday, (June 19, 2012).
   
• See, David H.K. Nguyen and Zelideh R. Martinez Hoy, “Jim Crowing” Plyler v. Doe: the Resegregation of Undocumented Students in American Higher Education through Discriminatory State Tuition and Fee Legislation, 63 Clev. St. L. Rev. 355 (2015).
   
• See, Udi Ofer, Protecting Plyler: New Challenges to the Right of Immigrant Children to Access a Public School Education, 1 Colum. J. Race & L. 187 (2012).
   
• See, Michael A. Olivas, The Political Efficacy of Plyler v. Doe: The Danger and the Discourse, 45 U.C. Davis L. Rev. 1 (November 2011).

Resources on Notario Fraud

In many Spanish-speaking countries, a notario is an attorney vested with special credentials, including the ability to represent individuals before the government. Many often confuse traditional notarios with U.S. notary public, those who are permitted to certify documents but aren't permitted to give legal advice. Perpetrators of notario fraud often take advantage of this confusion. Consequently, this has been an area ripe for fraud against immigrants originating from Mexico and Central America.

Notarios advertise legal assistance — especially with immigration paperwork — but then do not provide the advertised services. Victims are often left worse off by the loss of significant sums of money and, in some instances, the filing of false paperwork which exposes notario fraud victims to the possibility of deportation.

Notario fraud often increases in the wake of proposed immigration laws or new rules promulgated by the Department of Homeland Security. State attorneys general can help combat notario fraud through consumer outreach programs to educate the public, as well as by prosecuting notarios under state consumer protection statutes or immigration services fraud statutes and by issuing consumer alerts warning of potential scams.

Resources on Notario Fraud

• Notario Fraud Remedies, A Practical Manual for Immigration Practitioners, Georgetown Law School Community Justice Project (May 2013).
   
• Protecting Immigrant New Yorkers Task Force, Protecting Against Immigration Fraud (January 2016) (The Task Force members include the New York Attorney General's Office, various New York City government agencies, the Federal Trade Commission, local branches of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, local district attorneys offices, and advocacy organizations such as Make the Road New York and Catholic Charities Community Services).
   
• Federal Trade Commission, Avoiding Scams Against Immigrants webpage (last visited Dec. 12, 2016).
   
• American Bar Association, Fight Notario Fraud Attorney Resources webpage (last visited Nov. 23, 2016).

Examples of Immigration Fraud Cases

- FTC -

• Press Release, Federal Trade Commission, FTC Combats Immigration Services Scams (June 9, 2011).

- Arizona - 

• Press Release, Arizona Attorney General's Office, Adkisson Pleads Guilty for Defrauding Immigrants, (April 28, 2004).

  - California - 

• Press Release, State of California Department of Justice, Attorney General Lockyer Files Lawsuits Against Unregistered "Immigration Consultants," (January 10, 2003).

  - New Mexico - 

• Press Release, New Mexico Office of the Attorney General, Immigration Consultants on AG's Radar...Cease and Desist: Violation Results in a 2nd Lawsuit, (June 1, 2011).

  - New York - 

• Press Release, New York Office of the Attorney General, A.G. Schneiderman Announces $2.2 Million Restitution Fund For Victims Of Immigration Scam, (July 21, 2014).
   
• Press Release, New York Office of the Attorney General, A.G. Schneiderman Secures Landmark Agreement That Permanently Shuts Down Two Of The Nation’s Largest Immigration Services Organizations For Defrauding Immigrants, (May 21, 2013).

  - Texas -

• Press Release, Texas Attorney General's Office, Attorney General's Office Shuts Down Fraudulent Notarios and Unauthorized Immigration Consultants in South Texas, (May 29, 2013).

  - Washington - 

• Liz Jones, Washington Attorney General Cracks Down on Immigration Scams, KUOW.org (August 19, 2015).