Alabama
| Summary Demographic State Data (and Source) | |
|---|---|
| Population (2009 CB est.): | 4,708,708 |
| Population (2000 Census): | 4,447,100 |
| Foreign-Born Population (2009 CB est.) | 147,000 |
| Foreign-Born Population (2000 Census) | 87,772 |
| Share Foreign-Born (2009) | 3.1% |
| Share Foreign-Born (2000) | 2.0% |
| Naturalized U.S. Citizens (2009 CB est.): | 44,701 |
| Share Naturalized (2009): | 30.4% |
| Legal Immigrant Admission (DHS 2000-2009): | 30,198 |
| Refugee Admission (HHS 2000-2009) | 1,291 |
| Illegal Alien Population (2008 FAIR est.): | 60,000 |
| Costs of Illegal Aliens (2010 FAIR) | $297,700,000 |
| Projected 2050 Population (2006 FAIR) | 5,600,000 |
Alabama : General Data
STATE POPULATION
Based on the American Community Survey (ACS), the U.S. Census Bureau estimated that in July 2009 Alabama’s population had increased to 4,708,708 residents. That was an annual average increase since 2000 of about 28,130 residents. The annual rate of increase was about 0.6 percent per year. The comparable national annual rate of increase was 1.0 percent.
The 2000 Census found 4,447,100 persons resident in Alabama. This was an increase of 406,513 persons above the 1990 Census. The annual rate of increase (1.0%) was below the national rate of increase (1.2%).
The 2000 population was about 4,000 more persons than the Census Bureau had expected to find in the state in 2000 when it issued its state population projections in 1996. The significance of this is that the Census Bureau concluded that much of the shortfall in their population estimates during the 1990s was due to an underestimation of the illegal alien population.
Between the 1980 and 1990 Censuses, the population of Alabama grew at an annual rate of 0.37 percent (from 3,894,025 to 4,040,587 residents). The national rate of change was 1.0 percent.
FOREIGN-BORN POPULATION
The U.S. Census Bureau estimated on the basis of the ACS that the foreign-born population of Alabama was about 147,000 persons in 2009. The ACS estimate meant a foreign-born population share of 3.1 percent.
Net International Migration (NIM)
Using the Current Population Survey, the Census Bureau estimated that between the 2000 Census and July 2009 the state’s population increased by about 50,740 from net international migration. That was an annual average increase of about 5,455 (or 17.3%) of the total increase (not including the children born to the immigrants after their arrival in the United States). The remainder was due to net domestic migration and natural change (births minus deaths).
Foreign-Born Change
The amount of change since the 2000 Census found in the 2009 ACS indicates an average annual rate of increase in the foreign-born population of about 6,370 people, which is more than one-fifth (22.6%) of the state’s annual average population increase. Since 2000, the foreign-born population has increased by 67.5 percent compared to a 4.6 percent increase in the native-born population. That rate of increase is much higher than the national average of 23.8 percent. The annual rate of increase from 2000-2009 was 6 percent compared to a national rate of 2.4 percent.
Immigration also contributes to population growth through the children born to immigrants in this country. Nationally the share of births to the foreign-born is about double their share of the population. A 6.2 percent share of the state’s current births is large enough to account for about 3,800 births a year. Combining the increase in the foreign-born population and estimated immigrant births suggests that immigration may account nearly 10,170 persons added to the state’s population annually, i.e., nearly two-fifths (39.3%) of the state’s overall population increase.
During the 90s, the increase in the foreign-born population accounted directly for 10.9 percent of the state's overall population increase over that decade. With an estimate of the children born to the foreign-born population, the share of population increase due to immigration during that decade was about 14 percent. During that decade the annual average rate of increase in the foreign-born population was 7.3 percent compared to a national rate of 4.6 percent.
The 2000 Census found that more than half (53.6%) of Alabama's foreign-born population had arrived in the state since 1990. This was much higher than the national average (43.7%). Over a third (37%) of the state's foreign-born population in 1990 had arrived since 1980. The 2009 ACS data estimate that more than one-third (37.6%) of the state’s foreign-born population has arrived since 2000. That is much higher than the 31.6 percent share of new arrivals nationally.
Foreign-Born Characteristics
An indicator of the change in Alabama's immigrant population may be seen in data on the share of the population over five years of age that speaks a language other than English at home. Between 1990 and 2000, the share of non-English speakers increased from 2.9 percent to 3.9 percent. Nearly two-fifths (39.3%) of those persons in 2000 also said they spoke English less than very well. In the 2009 ACS, the share had increased to 4.6 percent and of those 44.6 percent spoke English less than very well. Spanish speakers were 61 percent of those who spoke other than English at home, and 72.2 percent of those who spoke English less than very well.
|
Speakers of Foreign Languages |
|
| Spanish | 89,730 |
| German | 14,890 |
| French | 13,410 |
| Chinese | 4,655 |
| Vietnamese | 4,560 |
| Korean | 4,030 |
| Arabic | 2,620 |
| Japanese | 2,200 |
| Italian | 2,160 |
| Tagalog | 1,700 |
|
(Source: Census Bureau report: Language Spoken at Home for the Population 5 Years and Over, April 2004) |
|
The chart above shows the foreign-born population increasing by 66 percent since 2000 and the share of that population from Latin America and the Caribbean increasing by 111 percent. That region’s share of the state’s immigrant population grew from 39.6 percent to 50.3 percent in 2009.
NATURALIZATION
Data from the 2009 ACS indicate that 44,701 residents, or 30.4 percent, of the foreign-born population in Alabama were naturalized U.S. citizens, compared to 32,200 residents, or 36.7 percent, in 2000.
Nationally, 40.3 percent of the foreign-born population was naturalized in 2000, and 43.7 percent in 2009.
LIMITED ENGLISH PROFICIENCY STUDENTS
Data are not available nationally on immigrant students (either legally or illegally resident in the United States) who are enrolled in primary and secondary schools (K-12). However, many of these students are enrolled in Limited English Proficiency/English Language Learning (LEP/ELL) instruction programs. The majority of these students may be assumed to be either legal or illegal immigrants or their children. A possible exception could be in areas with Native Americans who speak a native language other than English.
In Alabama, overall enrollment in 2008 (744,516) was 1.1 percent above enrollment in 1999. By contrast, LEP enrollment was 288.5 percent higher than a decade earlier. The share of LEP enrollment rose from 2 percent to 5.4 percent.
REFUGEES
Alabama has received 1,291 refugees over the most recent ten fiscal years (FY'00-'09) including 212 refugees in fiscal year 2009.
Under the Office of Refugee Resettlement's (HHS/ORR) assistance funding for FY'02 $106,915 is available for refugee employment training and other services programs in Alabama based on a three-year refugee settlement program covering 426 refugees (an average of $251 per refugee). This allocation does not include a larger share (55%) of funding programs for communities heavily affected by recent Cuban and Haitian entrants, communities with refugees whose cultural differences make assimilation especially difficult, communities impacted by federal welfare reform changes, educational support to schools with significant refugee students, and discretionary grants. ORR grants for FY’05 and FY’06 respectively were $143,557 and $183,596.
Data on enrollment in LEP/ELL programs are collected by the federal government from school systems that receive Title VII funds for these special instruction programs. The data on LEP/ELL enrollment are understated because data from private schools that do not apply for Title VII assistance are sketchy.
ILLEGAL ALIENS
FAIR Estimate - FAIR estimates the state’s illegal alien population as of 2011 is about 125,000 persons. This is part of an overall estimate of the U.S. illegal alien population of about 12 million persons.
INS/DHS Estimate - The INS (now dissolved into the Dept. of Homeland Security) estimated in February 2003 that the resident illegal population in Alabama was 24,000 as of January 2000. This number was 20,000 higher than the INS' 1996 estimate.
Other Estimates - The Pew Hispanic Center estimates the illegal alien population of the state at 130,000 as of 2010.
Fiscal Cost of Illegal Aliens
FAIR’s 2010 fiscal cost study, “The Fiscal Burden of Illegal Immigration on United States Taxpayers” estimated the following cost outlays and tax receipts:
| Alabama Fiscal Costs In 2009 | ||
| Due to Illegal Aliens ($M) | (Pct.) | |
| K-12 educ. | $159.2 | 53.5% |
| LEP educ. | $27.7 | 9.3% |
| Medicaid | $26.3 | 8.8% |
| SCHIP | $6.1 | 2.0% |
| Justice | $18.7 | 6.3% |
| Welfare+ | $21.4 | 7.2% |
| General | $38.3 | 12.9% |
| Total | $297.7 | |
| Tax Receipts | $18.2 | |
| Net Cost | $279.4 | |
Source: “The Fiscal Burden of Illegal Immigration on United States Taxpayers,” FAIR 2010.
FOREIGN STUDENTS
The 2009/10 annual report of the Institute of International Education (IIE) lists the number of foreign students attending post-secondary school in Alabama as 6,364. The following schools have major concentrations of these students: Auburn U. (959), U. Alabama-Tuscaloosa (892), Troy U. (860), U. Alabama-Birmingham (854), and U. So. Alabama-Mobile (777). These schools account for about 68 percent of the foreign students attending school in Alabama in 2009.
For information on foreign student issues see: Foreign Students in the United States.
POPULATION PROJECTION
We projected Alabama’s population in 2050 likely would be between 5.55 million and 5.6 million depending on what happens with immigration policy. See “Projecting the U.S. Population to 2050: Four Immigration Scenarios,” FAIR 2006.
Immigrant Admissions
| Alabama Immigrant Admissions by Fiscal Year |
|
| 2000 | 1,904 |
| 2001 | 2,257 |
| 2002 | 2,257 |
| 2003 | 1,689 |
| 2004 | 2,247 |
| 2005 | 4,200 |
| 2006 | 4,200 |
| 2007 | 3,393 |
| 2008 | 3,877 |
| 2009 | 3,891 |
| Total | 30,198 |
Recent immigrant admissions are at 567% of the level of admissions just after adoption of the current immigration system in 1965. During the 1965 to 1969 period, annual admissions averaged about 695 persons. During the 2005 to 2009 period, admissions averaged about 3,928 persons.
The charts below show recent immigrant admissions and the cumulative amount of immigrant admissions since FY'65. The number of annual admissions has ranged from 499 in FY'69 to 4,278 in FY'06. The cumulative total of immigrant admissions to Alabama between fiscal years 1965 and 2009 has been 77,368 persons.
The data for fiscal years 1989-91 were artificially raised slightly by the inclusion of former illegal aliens who were amnestied in 1986. According to INS data (1991) the number of amnesty applicants from Alabama was 1,776 (591 pre-1982 residents and 1,185 agricultural workers).
The data for FY'95, FY'97-'99, and FY '02-'04 were artificially low because the INS did not issue green cards to all the eligible applicants for adjustment of status who were already in the United States. In those years, new immigration could have registered as much as 30 percent higher, if the INS had kept up with its workload.
Beginning with FY'01, the government began to increase admissions as a result of reducing the size of the backlog of Section 245(i) adjustment of status cases, i.e., amnesty, for illegal aliens.
INS DATA BY NATIONALITY: FY'96 - FY'05
The table below furnishes INS data on the immigrants who have been admitted for residence in Alabama since 1996 by nationality.
The INS data are for nationals of the countries with the largest number of immigrants admitted or adjusted to legal residence each year since 1996. The absence of data means that the total number of admissions to the United States by nationals of that country was not enough to merit detailed reporting in that year.
The nationalities may change each year, so the totals in some cases will not reflect all the immigrants of that nationality who have become legal immigrants in Louisiana during this period.
The Department of Homeland Security website is has detailed data on immigrant admissions since FY’03 by year and by country. That resource has data for all source countries. (See http://www.dhs.gov/ximgtn/statistics/data/dslpr.shtm).
(-) indicates that the data for that year was not published for that country in the Immigration Statistical Yearbook. * China includes Hong Kong and Taiwan. The Soviet Union includes Russia and former parts of the USSR. Yugoslavia includes Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, Macedonia, Montenegro-Serbia, Slovakia and Slovenia.
The 31 nationalities above represent about three-quarters (73%) of all immigrant settlement and adjustment in Alabama during this ten-year period. The three largest sources of the new immigrants - India, Mexico and China - accounted for nearly one-third (31.7%) of the total immigrant settlement and adjustment since 1996.
Revised January 2008
Alabama : Poll Data
Rasmussen Poll: Arizona Law SB 1070
July 2010
Suppose the new Arizona immigration law was being considered for your state. Would you favor or oppose passage of that law in your state?
The U.S. Justice Department has decided to challenge the legality of Arizona’s new immigration law in federal court. Do you agree or disagree with the decision to challenge the legality of Arizona’s new immigration law?
A Rasmussen Report poll conducted 500 Likely Voters in Alabama on November 14th found:
- 82% oppose granting drivers’ licenses to illegal aliens.
- 81% say that when police officers pull someone over for a traffic violation, they should routinely check to see if that person is in the country legally.
- 78% believe that if an illegal immigrant is discovered in this manner, they should be deported.
A January 2005 poll of 1,018 Alabamians conducted by Auburn University’s Center for Governmental Services found
- “58% agreed that guest immigrant workers take jobs away from Americans and 55% disagreed that immigrants bring needed skills to the state. (“Survey: State opposed to immigration,” The Birmingham News, January 13, 2005)
Alabama : Immigration Impact
Impact on Environment and Quality of Life
Traffic — Vehicle traffic in Alabama increased by 48 percent between 1990 and 2008, causing increased strain on the state's roadways. Over half (52%) of urban highways in the state carry an amount of traffic "that is likely to result in significant delays during peak travel hours."1 As population growth put more traffic on the roads, the average time for Alabama commuters increased 48.5 percent during the 1990s, from 17.6 minutes to 26.1 minutes in 2000.2 Birmingham commuters were delayed by about 32 hours each due to congestion in 2007, causing 21 gallons of wasted fuel per commuter.3 Nearly one in seven (13%) of Alabama commuters had a commute of 45 minutes or longer in 2008.4
Nearly one-sixth (16%) of Alabama's government-maintained roads were in poor or mediocre condition in 2007. Vehicle repairs and operating costs related to poorly-maintained roads cost the typical motorist $162 per year, adding up to a statewide total of $590 million. Road conditions are worst in Alabama's major urban areas. Birmingham drivers foot a $344 annual bill for operating costs due to disrepair. The cost to Mobile drivers is $272 per year, and in Montgomery, $366 per year.5
Though Alabama's road situation is not as severe as some states, it is entering a troubled period in its ability to fund road maintenance. As of fiscal year 2008, expenses for the $38 billion federal highway aid program in Alabama will outpace revenue from gas taxes and other sources, according to forecasts by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office. Within three years, the program's reserves will be exhausted, meaning that the fund will no longer have enough money to meet all the demands on the books. 6
Disappearing Open Space — The amount of developed land in Alabama increased by 1,318,800 acres from 1982 to 2007, growing at a pace of 67,930 acres per year over the last ten years of that period.7
While Alabama pine plantation land has grown in recent years — primarily for commercial uses — the state lost 500,000 acres of natural forests during the 1990s. As these natural forests are converted to urban use, habitats are disrupted and species are becoming endangered.8 Alabama is expected to lose almost three million acres of forestland to urban growth by 2040, with particularly heavy losses expected around Birmingham.9
Crowded Housing — An estimated 33,124 of Alabama's housing units were classified as crowded in 2008, defined as units with more than one occupant per room. This amounted to 1.8 percent of the state's housing units. 7,940 of those were severely crowded, with at least 1.5 occupants per room.10 Following the national trend, crowded housing rates were driven upward by immigration. More than one-fifth (21%) of Alabama's children in immigrant families live in crowded housing, compared to just 8 percent of children with native-born parents.11
Affordable Housing — As population increases, the affordable housing supply often drops. In 2008, Alabama minimum wage earners needed to work a 78-hour week in order to afford a typical two-bedroom apartment. In 2002, that figure was 72 hours. Alabama's housing wage (the amount a full-time worker must earn per hour to afford a two-bedroom apartment at fair market rent) is $11.44, but the national minimum wage is $7.25.12
Air pollution — As population increases, pollution usually rises along with it. In Birmingham, the problem is so bad that the city expects to be unable to meet new federal air quality regulations and may face stiff penalties. Jefferson and Shelby counties also are not expected to meet the new standard.13
Poverty — Alabama's immigrants are more likely to be poor than their native-born counterparts. In 2007, 20.8 percent of foreign-born households were below the poverty line, compared to 16.7 percent of native households. An additional 14.3 percent of the foreign-born and 10.3 percent of native households had incomes between 100 and 149 percent of the poverty level.14 28.5 percent of children in immigrant families were poor in 2006, compared to 22.9 percent of native children.15
End Notes:
- The Road Information Project (TRIP), "Future Mobility in Alabama," March 2010.
- "Travel time to work for workers 16 and over", Census 2000 Summary file 3 (P31) and Census 1990 Summary file 3 (P050).
- Texas Transportation Institute, "Urban Mobility Report 2009."
- American Community Survey, 2008 Estimates, Custom Data Table.
- The Road Information Project (TRIP), "Future Mobility in Alabama," March 2010.
- "Report Card for America's Infrastructure," American Society of Civil Engineers.
- USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, "Summary Report: 2007 National Resources Inventory."
- "State's Forestland Grows by Million Acres," Associated Press, February 23, 2002.
- Allen G. Breed, "Sprawl Number 1 Threat to N.C. forests, Study Finds," Associated Press, May 26, 2002.
- American Community Survey, Three-Year Estimates 2006-2008. Data retrieved using ACS Custom Table tool.
- Kids Count Data Center, which used 2008 American Community Survey Data.
- National Low Income Housing Coalition, 2008. Estimate for 2002 from "Rental Housing for America's Poor Families: Farther Out of Reach than Ever," National Low Income Housing Coalition, 2002.
- "Birmingham Likely to Miss New Smog-Reduction Deadline," Associated Press, November 15, 2002.
- Migration Information Source State Data (Migration Policy Institute)
- Urban Institute, Children of Immigrants Data Tool.
Other Resources
State Local Reform Organizations
State Representatives Voting Record
Updated November 2010