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NEW STUDY ON THE IMPACT OF IMMIGRATION
A study by the Center for Immigration Studies shows that there are now 26.3 immigrants living in the U.S., the largest number ever. As a percentage of the population, immigrants are 9.8%. While this is significantly higher than the 4.8% figure in 1970, chosen as the baseline for the study, it is much less than the 14.7% of the population represented by immigrants in 1910. 
According to the study, immigrants represent one of every seven people living in poverty, and that the percentage of immigrant families living in poverty is 30 to 50 percent higher than native families. However, statistics from the U.S. Census Bureau Current Population Survey show that the average income of a family headed by an immigrant is $ 40,000 per year, as opposed to $ 32,000 per year for families headed by U.S. born citizens. 
The study found that immigration is the primary factor in population growth. According to the study, immigration between 1990 and 1998 accounts for 42% of the population growth in the U.S. during that time. However, according to statistics from the Cato Institute, more than 70% of immigrants to the U.S. are over 18, and have been educated abroad, education which would have cost the U.S. $ 1.43 trillion. Furthermore, only 3% of immigrants are over 65. The combined effect of these factors means immigration is lowering the average age in the U.S., and given the current and projected financial straits of Social Security, a younger population is necessary. Current projections show immigration will result in a $ 500 billion benefit to the Social Security system.
Proponents of immigration, including Stephen Moore of the Cato Institute, point out that the rise in immigration has coincided with the economic boom. One of the impacts of immigration is to provide a youthful employment pool, a necessary factor in a stable industrial economy.