What's at Stake for the State: Undocumented Californians, Immigration Reform, and Our Future Together

With 23 percent of the nation's undocumented population, California has a major stake in the outcome of the immigration reform debate. Commissioned by four local foundations, this report analyzes the characteristics of the California undocumented population with detailed tables for eight major regions of the state. The tables permit comparisons of the undocumented with citizens and documented immigrants along such variables as poverty rates, educational attainment, and child poverty. The tables also give the racial and nationality backgrounds of the undocumented, along with the industries in which they work.  The researchers also calculate the net gain to California and its regions of putting undocumented immigrants on the path to citizenship. The authors suggest that "California should begin planning for what comes the day after reform."  Knowing that the newly legalized will likely lack access to health care and other social services, the authors stress the importance of "build(ing) the public will for necessary investments as well as new public-private collaborations..." (American Immigrant Policy Portal) 

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