Brookings Book on Immigration Reform
U.S. Immigration Policy Keeps Skilled Workers Out, Hurting American Businesses
New Brookings Book Calls for Automatic Green Cards for U.S.-Trained Foreign Students; Other Policy Changes
(Washington, D.C.) July 6, 2010 — The United States grants only 15 percent of its visas to skilled, highly educated and talented workers needed by American businesses to grow and compete internationally, according to a new book released today by the Brookings Institution. By comparison, countries such as Canada and the United Kingdom are way ahead of the United States, setting aside over 55 percent of their visas for skilled workers.
“The U.S. has benefited greatly over the years from the ‘brain gain’ of immigration,” stated Darrell West, author of Brain Gain: Rethinking U.S. Immigration Policy. “Gifted immigrants have engineered advances in energy, information technology, international commerce, sports, arts, and culture. To stay competitive, we must make way for the next Sergey Brin, Andrew Grove, and Albert Einstein and open our doors to attract the unique talents from other nations.”
Brain Gain: Rethinking U.S. Immigration Policy Makes These Points:
· U.S. immigration policy went seriously off course after Congress passed legislation in 1965 making family unification the primary goal. Today, 64 percent of visas are granted for purposes of bringing members of the extended family into the U.S., including aunts, uncles, and cousins.
· If visas were limited to the immediate relatives of immigrants, hundreds of thousands of visas would be freed up to attract individuals with special talents or skills needed by American businesses.
· When immigration policy is based on family unification, public opposition is high – in the U.S. and Great Britain, it is over 50% in both cases. In Canada where the goal of immigration is to draw skilled workers to boost economic growth, opposition is much lower, at 27 percent.
· In 2007, immigrants raised American GDP by $37 billion a year.
· Between 1996 and 2008, immigrants were twice as likely as native-borns to start new businesses. Immigrant-founded companies produced $52 billion in sales and employed 450,000 workers in 2005.
· Nearly a quarter of patents filed from the United States in 2006 were based on the work of foreign-borns living in America. Fifty-three percent of patent-holders received their highest degree from a U.S. university.
· The cost of getting an undergraduate degree is over $200,000 and for a Ph.D., the expense can run over $250,000. Much of this cost is covered by universities seeking to attract smart students from abroad. Yet, little effort is made to keep these knowledge workers in the United States.
· Since 2001, the USA Patriot Act has created huge complications for colleges and universities seeking to admit foreign students.
· A review of U.S print and broadcast news coverage from 1995 to 2005 found that the media was twice as likely to stress the costs of immigration as the benefits.
Brookings Book Presents Revolutionary New Look at Immigration Reform:
Institute the Einstein Principle: Immigration should be seen as a “Brain Gain” to draw top international talent on the order of Albert Einstein. Here are West’s key recommendations:
· Give automatic green cards to foreign graduates of American programs. The U.S. is losing top talent to other countries. By creating an automatic “green card track” for foreign students in the fields of math, science, and technology, international students graduating from American universities would more likely stay here and help realize a return on thousands of dollars spent on their training and on developing their skill levels.
· Give visas to immediate family members only which would free up at least 160,000 visa slots annually for high-skilled and seasonal workers, foreign graduates and others.
· Provide a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants as long as they pay a fine for illegal entry, pay back taxes, pass background checks, and learn English.
· Put cost-effective border patrol methods in place.
Reaction from “Both Sides of the Aisle” to Brain Gain:
New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg: “For America to compete in the 21st century, we need to be able to attract – and keep – the world’s best, brightest and hardworking.”
Former Florida Jeb Bush: “A key element in a high-growth economic strategy is changing our immigration policies to enhance productivity and innovation. Brain Gain provides a roadmap to do just that.”
About Brain Gain Author Darrell West:
Darrell West is vice president and director of Governance Studies at the Brookings Institution. He was previously the director of the Taubman Center for Public Policy and American Institutions at Brown University and held the John Hazen White Chair as a professor of public policy and political science. Among his sixteen previous books are Digital Medicine: Health Care in the Internet Era (Brookings, 2009), Biotechnology Policy across National Boundaries (Palgrave Macmillan, 2007), and Digital Government: Technology and Public Sector Performance (Princeton, 2005).
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