Arizona’s Immigration Enforcement Success: A Model for Reducing Social Costs

Arizona’s state-level enforcement of immigration laws, initiated before Donald Trump’s presidency, proves that millions of unauthorized immigrants can be encouraged to self-deport, reducing social costs and benefiting native workers. Updated data through 2023 shows the lasting impact of these policies, offering a model for the nation to address the economic and social damage caused by unchecked immigration.

Economic Benefits for Native Workers

The *Wall Street Journal* (February 9, 2016) acknowledged that Arizona’s economy faced challenges when many unauthorized immigrants left, but significant benefits emerged. For the *Wall Street Journal*—known for its open-borders, big-business stance—to admit this is notable, especially given its historical opposition to immigration enforcement. Their bias aside, they overlooked many benefits to the state and its citizens when 40% of unauthorized immigrants self-deported between 2007 and 2012.

One example is Rob, a jalapeño pepper farmer, who, without illegal labor, was forced to hire legal workers. He invested $2 million in technology and automation, reducing his workforce by 90%—from paying $13/hour for illegal labor to $20/hour for legal, skilled workers. Beyond wages, he had to improve working conditions, pay Social Security and other employer taxes, and cover medical expenses, costs previously shifted onto the public. Bureau of Labor Statistics (2023) data shows this trend continued: Arizona farmworker wages rose from $15.50/hour in 2016 to $18.75/hour in 2023 (a 21% increase), and construction wages increased from $20.50/hour to $24.75/hour (a 20% increase), reflecting sustained labor scarcity.

The *Wall Street Journal* noted:

The reduced competition for low-skilled jobs was a boon for some native-born construction and agricultural workers who got jobs or raises… Wages for plasterers, landscapers, farmworkers, and other low-skilled laborers jumped because of scarcity… The decrease in immigration redistributed income from employers to employees, particularly at the bottom end of the labor market… “That’s a good deal.”

Employers like Precise Drywall Inc. in Phoenix struggled to find workers after the crackdown, forcing them to advertise and raise wages. This is proper capitalism at work—businesses must adapt to market forces, not rely on crony capitalism through illegal labor. The benefits extend beyond wages: employed legal citizens reduce their reliance on welfare, lowering social costs and addressing poverty more effectively than government redistribution schemes.

Reducing Crime Through Enforcement

By enforcing laws the federal government often ignores, Arizona saw 200,000 unauthorized immigrants self-deport between 2007 and 2012, dropping from 450,000 in a state of 6.7 million. Pew Research Center (2024) estimates Arizona’s unauthorized immigrant population at 250,000 in 2022—a 44% decline from 2007. This proves the argument that removing 10–20 million unauthorized immigrants nationwide would take decades is baseless; enforcing laws encourages self-deportation.

The Biden administration’s policies exacerbated the problem, flooding states like Arizona with millions of illegal immigrants through fraudulent programs. The House Committee on Homeland Security (2024) reported over 10.8 million encounters nationwide since FY 2021, with 8.72 million at the Southwest border. Through programs like CBP One and the Cuban, Haitian, Nicaraguan, and Venezuelan (CHNV) mass-parole scheme, over 1.4 million inadmissible aliens were released into the U.S., often with minimal vetting. The Federation for American Immigration Reform (2025) estimates 18.6 million illegal immigrants in the U.S. as of March 2025—a 28.2% increase since December 2020—attributing this surge to Biden’s abuse of parole authority. These immigrants, despite being given paperwork, remain illegal, as the programs were fraudulent from the start. A House Judiciary Committee report (2024) exposed CHNV fraud, including sponsors with criminal ties, welfare recipients, and even potential sex trafficking, with one IP address filing 21 sponsorship applications, 18 for females, six under 18. Arizona bore the brunt of these policies, with increased strain on resources already stretched by native-born low-achievers.

Open-borders advocates claim immigrants contribute more in taxes than they cost, but they fail to separate legal citizens from unauthorized immigrants or account for real costs. Arizona Department of Corrections (2023) reports the annual cost of incarcerating non-citizens convicted of felonies at $165 million, down from $180 million in 2014—a 9% further decline. However, this ignores broader costs: Texas Department of Public Safety (2023 update) reports that foreign nationals committed 850,000 unique crimes in Texas from 2008 to 2023, including thousands of homicides and sexual assaults. In five states with large unauthorized immigrant populations (New York, California, Texas, Arizona, Florida), 38% of murders from 2005–2008 were committed by non-citizens, despite being only 5.6% of the population. The Trump administration’s reversal of Biden’s policies—ending CBP One and CHNV parole—slashed border encounters from 189,913 in February 2024 to 8,326 in February 2025, showing that enforcement, not fraudulent paperwork, restores order.

Relieving the Burden on Schools

Arizona’s enforcement significantly reduced educational costs. The *Wall Street Journal* reported:

The number of students enrolled in intensive English courses in Arizona public schools fell from 150,000 in 2008 to 70,000 in 2012 and has remained constant since. Schooling 80,000 fewer students would save the state roughly $350 million a year, by one measure.

Updated data from the Arizona Department of Education (2023) shows 65,000 students in intensive English courses, down from 70,000 in 2012, saving approximately $400 million annually compared to 2008’s $750 million cost (adjusted for inflation). Yet, the state still spends over $300 million annually on non-citizen children, a burden worsened by Biden’s fraudulent immigration programs that released over 1.4 million inadmissible aliens into the U.S., many of whom settled in states like Arizona. As noted in Educational Failures in Diversity-Driven Systems, schools in California and Baltimore struggle with low proficiency rates—e.g., 70% of Black students in California failed English standards in 2024, and 13 Baltimore high schools had zero students proficient in math in 2023. Arizona’s reduction in non-citizen students prevents similar crises, but the remaining burden highlights the need for assimilation and merit-based education, not multiculturalism.

According to Thinking Arizona, only 6 in 10 Hispanics over 25 in Arizona have graduated high school, compared to 9 in 10 Whites. The “status dropout rate” for foreign-born Hispanics is three times higher than for U.S.-born Hispanics, reflecting challenges with language and cultural assimilation. The Center for Immigration Studies notes that 94% of immigrant Hispanic families from Mexico and Central America rely on welfare, perpetuating a cycle of poverty that burdens schools and society.

Healthcare Savings and Broader Impacts

Arizona Hospital and Healthcare Association (2023) estimates emergency-room spending on non-citizens at $90 million, down from $106 million in 2014—a 15% further decline. This reduction reflects the sustained impact of self-deportation, but the broader costs—such as medical expenses for victims of non-citizen crime—remain unaddressed by open-borders advocates.

A Model for National Reform

Arizona’s success challenges the anti-reason ideologies that undermine Western progress, as discussed in The Role of Western Culture in Pioneering Modern Science and Technology. The Biden administration’s fraudulent immigration programs, which released 18.6 million illegal immigrants into the U.S. by March 2025, reflect the same nature-worshipping, multicultural mindset that prioritizes ideology over reason, much like the rejection of GMOs and nuclear power. Arizona’s enforcement aligns with the Western principles of reason, merit, and individual liberty, offering a blueprint for national reform.

By enforcing immigration laws, Arizona has reduced social costs, increased wages for native workers, and opened opportunities for low-achieving native-born minorities displaced by illegal labor. Nationally, with 11.3 million unauthorized immigrants in 2022 (Migration Policy Institute), similar policies could encourage self-deportation, mitigate economic and social damage, and restore proper capitalism over the crony capitalism of mass immigration.

Posted May 4, 2025.