FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 5, 2025
Contact: Kirstin Snow, snow@pennpolicy.org
RELEASE: Pennsylvania Policy Center – Economic Impact of Immigrants Key to a Thriving Commonwealth
Immigrant Families and Allies Rallied at PA Capitol for ‘Immigrant Rights’
Hundreds rallied at the state capitol steps on Cinco de Mayo to demand Pennsylvania leaders stand up against Trump’s mass deportation agenda
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania – As attacks on immigrant communities escalate across the country, Pennsylvania Policy Center’s Pennsylvanians Together campaign, Make the Road Pennsylvania, and dozens of allied organizations gathered hundreds of immigrants and allies on the steps of the state capitol in Harrisburg for a rally on May 5 to celebrate the power, culture, and contributions of immigrant communities and demand that Pennsylvania’s leaders stand up and defend them.
The Trump administration is ramping up efforts to tear families apart, weaponizing private data to target and deport immigrants, gutting asylum rights, and criminalizing immigrant communities. But immigrant communities and allies are organizing, speaking out, and fighting back.
On May 5, 300 people across the state, representing 18 community organizations gathered at the state capitol steps for a rally to stand in solidarity with immigrant communities and advocate for their rights as a declaration that Pennsylvania stands against injustice and division.
Immigration policies have taken center stage in public debates this year, but much of the conversation has been driven by emotion, not data. When we look at the data, however, we find two things.
First, as a report (summarized here) from our organization the Immigration Research Initiative, and the Economic Policy Institute shows, immigrants make a major contribution to Pennsylvania’s economy.
- Immigrant workers and business owners contribute to economic growth in Pennsylvania—Nearly one million immigrants reside in Pennsylvania. Immigrants work in low-wage, middle-wage, and higher-wage jobs in sectors across our state’s economy.
- 20% of Main Street business owners in Pennsylvania are immigrants, operating storefront shops that help keep downtown areas vibrant.
- 10% of Pennsylvania workers are immigrants, including 24% of chefs and head cooks, 30% of software developers, and 26% of physicians.
- The labor of immigrants is especially important in a state with an aging population.
Second, this in-depth national study from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP) shows that here in Pennsylvania, undocumented immigrants contributed $523,100,000 in state and local taxes in 2022—a number that would have risen to $667,000,000 if these taxpayers had been granted work authorization, according to the study.
Other key findings:
- Nationally, undocumented immigrants contributed $96.7 billion in federal, state, and local taxes in 2022. Of this, $37.3 billion went to state and local governments.
- For every one million undocumented immigrants who reside in the country, public services receive $8.9 billion in additional tax revenue. On the flip side, for every one million undocumented immigrants who are deported, public services stand to lose $8.9 billion in tax revenue.
- Nationally, providing access to work authorization to all current undocumented immigrants would increase their tax contributions by $40.2 billion per year to $136.9 billion.
- More than one-third of the tax dollars paid by undocumented immigrants goestoward payroll taxes dedicated to funding programs—like Social Security and Medicare—that these workers are barred from accessing.
- In PA and 39 other states, undocumented immigrants pay higher state and local tax rates than the top 1 percent of households living within their borders.
- Similarly, undocumented immigrants in Pennsylvania are barred from receiving meaningful tax credits like the Child Tax Credit or Earned Income Tax Credit.
- Although estimates are uncertain, most experts believe that about 5% of the employees in our state are undocumented immigrants. The work they do is especially important in rural agricultural areas and in our cities. Losing them would undermine the state’s economy in both areas.
- The labor of immigrants is especially important in a state with an aging population.
Marc Stier, executive director of Pennsylvania Policy Center, said: “These two reports give a comprehensive picture of the contribution that immigrants, including undocumented immigrants, make to the economy of our state. They hold critical jobs—and not just those that are low-paid—and play an important role as entrepreneurs. Their activity creates jobs and supports local businesses owned by native-born Pennsylvanians. And they pay a great deal in taxes to state and local governments, while not receiving any safety net benefits.”
Diana Robinson and Patty Torres, co-executive directors of Make The Road Pennsylvania, said: “The Trump regime has its sights set on all immigrants, no matter their legal status, and it’s using illegal actions against immigrants as a test case to target anyone who dares to disagree with them. An attack on immigrants is an attack on all of us—weakening our economy, tearing families apart and threatening the very fabric of our society. This is about power, fear and control, but we’re not backing down. Our strength is in our solidarity.”
Instead of honoring the contribution of immigrants to our economy and to state and local revenues, Trump and his allies are scapegoating them for political gain. Immigrants are the lifeline of localities across Pennsylvania and drive a disproportionate share of the state’s GDP, contributing more than their share, even as politicians target them for deportation.
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