The effect of mass legalization on US state-level institutions: Evidence from the immigration reform and control act

Lili Yao (), J. Brandon Bolen () and Claudia R. Williamson ()
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Lili Yao: Mississippi State University, Mississippi State
J. Brandon Bolen: Mississippi College
Claudia R. Williamson: University of Tennessee At Chattanooga
Authors registered in the RePEc Author Service: Claudia Williamson Kramer

Public Choice, 2021, vol. 189, issue 3, No 7, 427-463

Abstract: Abstract A new case for immigration restrictions argues that migrants may transmit low productivity to their destination countries by importing low-quality economic institutions. Using the 1986 Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA) as a natural experiment, we test whether the legalization of undocumented immigrants affects the quality of state-level economic institutions in the United States. Using synthetic control models, we find that, in the short run, legalization may increase the burden of government spending. However, in the long run, we find statistically insignificant effects of legalization on economic institutions.

Keywords: Immigration; Institutions; Labor Mobility; Synthetic Control Method; J1; J6; H7; O43 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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DOI: 10.1007/s11127-021-00894-x

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