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Nevada

Summary Demographic State Data (and Source)
Population (2008 CB est.):	2,600,167
Population (2000 Census):	1,998,257
Foreign-Born Population (2008 FAIR est.):	509,780
Foreign-Born Population (2000 Census):	316,593
Share Foreign-Born (2008 FAIR est.):	19.6%
Share Foreign-Born (2000):	15.8%
Immigrant Stock (2000 CB est.):	576,000
Share Immigrant Stock (2000 est.):	28.8%
Naturalized U.S. Citizens (2006 CB est.):	172,505
Share Naturalized (2006 est.):	36.2%
Legal Immigrant Admission (DHS 1997-2006):	87,527
Refugee Admission (DHS 1997-2006):	5,400
Illegal Alien Population (2008 FAIR est.):	210,000
Cost of Illegal Aliens - (2005 FAIR)	$629,900,000
Projected 2050 Population - (2006 FAIR):	8,688,545

Nevada: Extended Immigration Data

STATE POPULATION

Using the Current Population Survey, the U.S. Census Bureau estimated that in July 2008 Nevada’s population had increased to 2,600,167 residents, i.e., an annual average increase of about 165,000 residents since 2000. That is a rate of increase of about 2.8 percent per year. 

 

NET INTERNATIONAL MIGRATION (NIM)

Using the Current Population Survey, the Census Bureau estimated that between the 2000 Census and July 2008 the state’s population increased annually by about 85,475 residents from Net International Migration. The remainder was due to net domestic migration and natural change (births minus deaths). That was an annual average increase of about 10,300 (or 14.2%) of the total increase (not including the children born to the immigrants after their arrival in the United States).

[Note:children born in the United States to immigrants (part of the immigrant stock) are not included as part of the immigration flow]. 

FOREIGN-BORN POPULATION

The U.S. Census Bureau estimated on the basis of the American Community Survey (ACS) that the foreign-born population of Nevada was 461,484 persons in 2006. The ACS is a large-scale, continuous sampling process designed to replace the need for a long-form in the 2010 Census. However, because the ACS does not have the same follow-up procedures as the Census to include non-respondents, the ACS may underestimate the foreign-born population.

FAIR estimates that the foreign-born population of Nevada was 509,780 residents in July 2008. This meant a foreign-born population share of 19.6 percent. The amount of change since the 2000 Census indicates an average annual rate of increase in the foreign-born population of about 23,275 people, which is nearly one-third (32.1%) of the state’s annual average population increase. Since 2000, the foreign-born population has increased by 61 percent compared to a 24.3 percent increase in the native-born population.

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 39.4 percent share of the state’s current births is large enough to account for about 13,795 births a year. Combining the increase in the foreign-born population and estimated immigrant births suggests that immigration may account nearly 37,070 persons added to the state’s population annually, i.e., more than half (51.1%) of the state’s overall population increase. 

 

A comparison of the increase in the immigrant population from 1990 with the change in the overall population during the same period shows that immigrant settlement directly accounted for 26.6 percent of the state's overall population increase over that decade. The share of the population increase due to immigration would be still higher if the children of the immigrants born here after their arrival were included with their immigrant parents in the calculation. The amount of the overall impact of immigration (immigrants plus their children) on population change is likely to be closer to 38 percent, which is based on the increase in the share of those who speak a language other than English at home in Nevada. 

Speakers of Foreign Languages (at home in Nevada in the 2000 Census)
Spanish	299,945
Tagalog	29,475
German	10,310
Chinese	9,060
French	7,860
Korean	6,635
Italian	6,170
Japanese	5,680
Vietnamese	3,810
Thai	3,615
(Source: Census Bureau report: Language Spoken at Home for the Population 5 Years and Over, April 2004)

 The Census Bureau’s American Community Survey found that in 2006, the foreign born population was 475,914 residents, an increase of 50.3% percent since 2000. In comparison, the foreign-born population changed from 104,828 to 316,593 residents between 1990 and 2000, an increase of 202.0 percent.

The ten countries below constituted approximately one fourth (75.6%) of the foreign-born population in Nevada in 2006. Mexico accounted for (42.7%). 

 

Foreign-Born Change Since 1980: Top Ten Countries 1990-2006
Rank	Country	1990		Country	2000		Country	2006
1	Mexico	32,501		Mexico	153,946		Mexico	230,314
2	Philippines	8,495		Philippines	31,491		Philippines	52,106
3	Canada	6,583		El Salvador	12,080		El Slavador	15,457
4	United Kingdom	4,700		Canada	10,690		Cuba	11,448
5	Cuba	4,430		China	8,516		Canada	11,334
6	Germany	4,421		Cuba	7,692		China	9,837
7	Korea	3,207		United Kingdom	6,872		Vietnam	9,011
8	El Salvador	2,978		Germany	6,621		Germany	8,268
9	Vietnam	2,477		Korea	6,071		Korea	7,111
10	China	1,769		Guatemala	5,463		England	4,840
	All Other	33,267		All Others	67,151		All Others	116,188
	Total	104,828		Total	316,593		Total	359,726

 

THE IMMIGRANT STOCK

The Census Bureau estimated that there were about 576,000 people in Nevada in 1997 who were "immigrant stock." That is a term that refers to immigrants and their children born here after their arrival. Based on that estimate, and a population of 1,998,257, the immigrant stock share of the state's population was 28.8 percent -- the fifth highest share in the country.

As the graph below shows, the amount and share of Nevada’s population change due to the increase in the foreign stock is rising rapidly. Over the past 34 years the new immigrants and children born to them have added about 485,800 people to the population. Over this period, the increase in the foreign stock has accounted for 26.6 percent of the state’s population increase.  

 

NATURALIZATION

Data from the 2006 American Community Survey indicate that 172,505 residents, or 36.2 percent, of the foreign-born population in Nevada were citizens, compared to 116,786 residents, or 36.9 percent, in 2000.

Nationally, 40.3 percent of the foreign-born population was citizens in 2000 and 42.0 percent were citizens in 2006. 

REFUGEE SETTLEMENT

Nevada has received 5,400 refugees over the most recent ten fiscal years (FY'97-'06), with 489 arriving in FY’06.

  

Under the Office of Refugee Resettlement's (HHS/ORR) assistance funding for FY'02 $494,168 is available for refugee employment training and other services programs in Nevada based on a three-year refugee settlement program covering 1,969 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 $1,417,858 and $1,485,824.  

 

IMMIGRANT CHILDREN

In 2000 nearly three-tenths of all of Nevada's children are either foreign born or the child of an immigrant. Six percent are first-generation immigrants (foreign born) and 22 percent are second-generation (a child of an immigrant).
(Source: "Check Points," The Urban Inst. Sept. 2, 2000)  

 

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. Many may be U.S.-born, but the majority of these students may be assumed to be either immigrants or the children of immigrants, with the exception being areas with native Americans who speak a native language other than English. 

In Nevada, overall enrollment in 2006 (412,260) was 53 percent above enrollment in 1996. By contrast, LEP enrollment (74,305 - 18% of all enrollment) was 199 percent higher than a decade earlier.  

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. 

 

FOREIGN STUDENTS

The 2006/07 annual report of the Institute of International Education (IIE) lists the number of foreign students attending post-secondary school in Nevada as 3,170. One school in Nevada is listed as having a major concentration of these students: University of Las Vegas had enrollment of 1,443 foreign students, 5.2% of total enrollment. 

Below, a chart illustrates the sharp increase of foreign students attending school in Nevada from 1960-2000.  

ILLEGAL ALIENS

FAIR Estimate - FAIR estimates the state’s illegal alien population as of 2008 is as many as 210,000 persons. This is part of an overall estimate of the U.S. illegal alien population of about 13 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 Nevada was 101,000 as of January 2000. This number 77,000 higher than the INS' 1996 estimate. In November 2006, DHS updated the estimate of the stat's illegal alien population to 240,000, a striking 200,000 more than just ten years previously.

Other Estimates - The Pew Hispanic Center estimates the illegal alien population of the state at 150,000 to 200,000 as of 2005.

 

COST OF ILLEGAL ALIENS

Incarceration Costs -The INS estimated in February 2003 that the illegal alien population in Nevada was about 101,000 residents. This was more than a four-fold increase from the last INS estimate that in October 1996 the illegal alien population living in Nevada was 24,000 residents. The previous INS estimate was that in October 1992 there were 18,000 illegal aliens. The numbers show a rapidly growing illegal alien population.

Most of the illegal aliens are newcomers, because in 1986 an amnesty was enacted that allowed illegal resident aliens to become legal residents. INS data listed in 1991 the number of applicants from Nevada for the amnesty for illegal aliens adopted in 1986 as 3,421 (1,149 long-term illegal residents and 2,272 agricultural workers.

The current INS estimate means that there are only 12 states with larger numbers of illegal alien residents.

Nevada has received partial compensation under the federal State Criminal Alien Assistance Program (SCAAP) that was established in 1994 to compensate the states and local jurisdictions for incarceration of "undocumented," aliens who are serving time for a felony conviction or at least two misdemeanors.

The recent SCAAP amounts that Nevada has received were:

FY’99	—	$3,704,838
FY’00	—	$1,909,146
FY’01	—	$4,543,847
FY’02	—	$4,333,739
FY’03	—	$2,761,068
FY’04	—	$3,591,704
FY’05	—	$4,363,186
FY’06	—	$5,936,601
FY’07	—	$6,133,754
FY’08	—	$6,791,824

The amount of SCAAP awards has been declining in both total distributions and even more as a share of the state’s expenses. In FY’99 the state received 38.6% of its costs for 556 prisoner years of detention. By FY’02, the state’s reported illegal alien detention more than doubled to 1,192 prisoner years, while compensation increased by 17 percent and since has decreased sharply.  

Medical Costs - Under the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act, hospitals with emergency rooms are required to treat and stabilize patients with emergency medical needs regardless whether or not they are in the country legally or whether they are able to pay for the treatment. Congress in 2003 enacted an appropriation of $250 million per year (for 4 years) to help offset some of the costs due to use of this service by illegal aliens. This amount has been allocated among the states based upon estimates of the illegal alien population and data on the apprehension of illegal aliens in each state. This amount compensates only a fraction of the medical outlays. For Nevada, the proposed payment in fiscal year 2004 is $2,408,539.

Educational Costs - In our study Breaking the Piggy Bank: How Illegal Immigration is Sending Schools into the Red, we estimated based on 2004 data that educational expenditures for illegal immigration were costing the Nevada taxpayer $321.1 million dollars annually. This cost was partially for educating students who were themselves illegally in the country ($133.8 million) and in part for the education of their siblings born in the United States to illegal residents ($187.3 million).

Projected Fiscal Costs - In 2006 we estimated that Nevada taxpayers are currently burdened with annual costs of about $518 million because of illegal aliens residing in the state. That estimate was based on only expenditures for education, emergency medical care and incarceration. We projected that those costs will rise unless we gain control over our borders and our worksites. If a new amnesty and increases in immigrants and guest workers were enacted, as proposed by business and ethnic advocacy groups, we project that the cost to the state’s taxpayers for those same programs would rise to $950 million per year in 2010 and to $1.784 billion per year in 2020.

“The Costs of Illegal Immigration to Nevadans” is a detailed and more current analysis of these cost areas published in 2009.

 

LOCAL ORGANIZATIONS

You can view a listing of local immigration reform groups here.  

 

STATE CONGRESSIONAL DELEGATION VOTING RECORD

You can view the voting record of your representatives in Congress regarding immigration issues in our voting report section.

 

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Nevada: Immigrant Admissions

Nevada Immigrant Admissions by Fiscal Year
1997	6,541
1998	6,106
1999	8,305
2000	7,827
2001	9,618
2002	9,499
2003	6,336
2004	8,758
2005	9,823
2006	14,174
Total	87,527

 

Recent immigrant admissions have slightly increased by 1332 percent since adoption of the current immigration system in 1965. During the 1965-'69 period, annual admissions averaged about 685 immigrants. During the 2002-'06 period, admissions averaged about 9,825 immigrants.

The charts below show recent immigrant admissions and the cumulative immigrant admissions data since 1965. The number of annual admissions has ranged from 491 in FY'70 to 14,714 in FY'06. The cumulative total of admissions to Nevada between fiscal years 1965 and 2002 was about 174,795 immigrants.

 

 

 

The data for fiscal years 1989-91 were artificially raised by the inclusion of former illegal aliens who were amnestied in 1986. According to INS data (1991) the number of amnesty applicants from Nevada was 10,287.

The data for FY'95 and FY'97-'99 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 four 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 INS 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'93 - FY'02

The INS data below are furnished for nationals of the countries with the largest number of immigrants admitted or adjusted to legal residence each year since 1993. 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 Wyoming during this period.

The Department of Homeland Security website has detailed data on immigrant admissions since FY’03 by year and by country. (See http://www.dhs.gov/ximgtn/statistics/data/dslpr.shtm)

 

Immigrant Admissions by Fiscal Year
Country	FY'93	FY'94	FY'95	FY'96	FY'97	FY'98	FY'99	FY'00	FY'01	FY'02	Total
Bangladesh	-	-	-	31	64	27	28	28	-	36	214
Canada	118	139	147	158	103	119	115	140	273	195	1,507
China *	238	397	209	233	248	313	259	357	399	415	3,068
Colombia	29	31	38	40	42	50	67	64	93	80	534
Cuba	156	166	220	255	371	195	364	245	540	491	3,003
Dom. Rep.	13	16	11	15	22	14	19	15	24	16	165
Ecuador	8	-	11	17	13	11	21	14	17	24	136
El Salvador	178	122	143	228	235	212	271	322	339	474	2,994
Germany	43	48	48	-	35	10	37	48	61	50	431
Guatemala	73	43	60	123	138	108	121	126	167	204	1,163
Guyana	6	6	3	2	2	1	1	0	-	9	30
Haiti	2	2	14	16	8	9	7	11	6	23	98
Honduras	45	-	-	-	43	30	65	49	-	61	293
India	88	68	115	136	98	145	111	141	184	167	1,253
Iran	43	47	39	76	55	43	55	45	69	93	565
Ireland	33	50	-	-	5	3	4	4	-	4	103
Jamaica	24	10	12	5	12	9	13	14	9	20	128
Japan	-	29	-	-	42	44	42	55	96	53	361
Korea	77	102	75	86	61	80	87	83	126	90	867
Mexico	1,049	951	1,127	2,263	3,002	2,881	4,457	3,120	3,308	3,452	25,610
Nicaragua	-	-	-	-	43	39	73	278	190	132	755
Nigeria	-	-	19	12	8	20	16	30	-	5	110
Pakistan	30	35	38	47	43	46	56	59	58	48	457
Peru	29	43	36	52	44	47	65	57	77	95	545
Philippines	723	773	687	806	799	712	680	859	1,218	1,186	8,443
Poland	21	26	18	16	20	6	18	36	21	37	219
Sov. Un. *	36	58	83	52	47	79	79	118	80	152	784
Trin.& Tob.	-	3	-	-	4	2	3	6	-	7	25
U. Kingdom	86	106	85	78	63	55	83	98	119	92	865
Vietnam	121	117	98	83	110	95	127	173	124	142	1,190
Yugo. *	-	-	43	96	81	32	123	182	294	384	1,235
Other	776	663	927	948	680	669	841	1,050	1,726	1,262	9,542
Total	4,045	4,051	4,306	5,874	6,541	6,106	8,305	7,827	9,618	9,499	66,172

 

A dash (-) indicates that the data for that year were not published for that country in the INS Statistical Yearbook.
* China data include Hong Kong and Taiwan. Former USSR data continued since break-up (except FY'96-'97 and ‘01 include only Russia and Ukraine). Former Yugoslavia data continued since break-up.

The 31 nationalities above represent about seven-eighths (85.6%) of all immigrant settlement and adjustment in Nevada during this ten-year period. Immigrants from Mexico alone accounted for nearly two-fifths (38.7%) of all immigrant admissions during the period. When immigrants from the Philippines (12.8%) are added to those from Mexico, they account for more than half (51.5%) of the ten-year total.  

 

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Nevada : Poll Data

Nevada Zogby Polling Results (February 2009)

A statewide public opinion poll conducted by the Zogby International polling organization finds that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) is failing to represent the interests of the vast majority of his Nevada constituents on immigration policy. Sen. Reid’s consistent obstruction of immigration enforcement efforts is also taking a huge toll on Nevada’s state budget. A new study by the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) finds that illegal immigration costs Nevada $630 million annually. Read the full press release about these results.

As a Nevada resident, how do you believe illegal immigration is affecting the state?

a. Very negatively	31%
b. Somewhat negatively	31
c. Somewhat positively	16
d. Very positively	9
e. No impact	8
f. Not sure	5

What impact, if any, do you believe the estimated 200,000 illegal immigrants living in Nevada have on the state budget?

a. Very negative	37%
b. Somewhat negative	39
c. Somewhat positive	8
d. Very positive	2
e. No impact	10
f. Not sure	4

A federal program known as E-Verify allows employers to electronically verify the Social Security numbers of the people they hire to ensure that they are eligible to work in the U.S. Unless Congress votes to reauthorize E-Verify, it will expire in March. Which of the following statements best reflects your views?

Statement A: "It is important that Congress reauthorize E-Verify and preserve this protection for American workers."

Statement B: "Employers should be allowed to hire whomever they want, whether they are authorized to work in the U.S. or not."

Statement A	83%
Statement B	12
Neither	4
Not sure	1

President Barack Obama, with the support of Senator Harry Reid, has proposed an economic stimulus package aimed at creating millions of new jobs in America. With regard to the effort to create new jobs, which of the following statements best reflects your views?

Statement A: "The government must have safeguards, like E-Verify, in place to make sure that only legal U.S. workers can fill jobs created with taxpayer money."

Statement B: "It makes no difference who fills jobs created with taxpayer money and no special effort should be made to ensure that only legal U.S. workers take those jobs."

Statement A	78%
Statement B	15
Neither	7
Not sure	1

Recently, Senator Harry Reid of Nevada announced his intention to reintroduce an immigration reform bill that would legalize or grant amnesty to an estimated 13 million illegal immigrants living in the U.S. The bill also promises that the government will increase efforts to prevent illegal immigration in the future. Which of the following statements best reflects your opinion?

Statement A: "I oppose legalization or amnesty for illegal immigrants. Instead, the government should enforce and strengthen existing laws to convince illegal immigrants to return home and open up jobs for unemployed American workers."

Statement B: "I support granting legalization or amnesty to current illegal immigrants, allowing them to keep their jobs, coupled with a commitment on the part of the government to enforce our immigration laws in the future.

Statement A	55%
Statement B	34
Neither	11
Not sure	0

I would like to get your views on what impact you think the proposed immigration legislation would have specifically on Nevada.

Statement A: "Legalizing, or granting amnesty to, the estimated 200,000 illegal immigrants now living in Nevada would harm American workers, add to the state's fiscal crisis, and lead to more illegal immigration."

Statement B: "Legalizing or granting amnesty to, the estimated 200,000 illegal immigrants now living in Nevada would benefit all workers in the state, ease the state's fiscal crisis, and solve the problem of illegal immigration once and for all."

Statement A	60%
Statement B	19
Neither	19
Not sure	1

Sample Characteristics	Frequency	Valid Percent*
Sample size	501	100
Las Vegas	304	61
Outside Vegas	197	39
Very likely to vote	377	75
Somewhat likely to vote	124	25
Democrat	190	38
Republican	150	30
Independent/Minor party	160	32
18-29	84	17
30-49	191	39
50-64	144	29
65+	74	15
18-24	58	12
25-34	58	12
35-54	213	43
55-69	116	24
70+	46	9
Did not answer age	9	--
No college degree	200	40
College graduate+	301	60
Did not answer education	0	--
White	342	69
Hispanic	74	15
African American	50	10
Asian/Pacific	15	3
Other/mixed	15	3
Did not answer race	5	--
Live in large city	300	61
Live in small city	71	14
Live in suburbs	46	9
Live in rural area	78	16
Liberal	149	30
Moderate	129	26
Conservative	213	43
Did not answer ideology	9	--
Roman Catholic	90	18
Protestant	258	52
Jewish	7	2
Other/None	140	28
Did not answer religion	6	--
Born-again	87	34
Not born-again	170	66
Member of union	123	25
Not member of union	378	76
Parent of child under 17	192	38
Not parent of child under 17	309	62
Married	300	60
Single, never married	104	21
Divorced/widowed/separated	93	19
Civil union/domestic partnership	3	1
NASCAR fan	131	26
Not NASCAR fan	370	74
Investor	194	39
Non-investor	307	61
Wal-Mart weekly	155	31
Monthly	215	43
1-2 times year	78	16
Never	40	8
Other	13	3
Female	261	52
Male	240	48

Mason-Dixon Poll

• 59% of registered voters believed that “a tough approach to immigration” is preferable to a guest worker program.
• 36% preferred the amnesty approach, with the balance of respondents undecided. (Mason-Dixon Polling and Research telephone poll conducted of 625 registered voters, October, 2007)

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Nevada: Immigration Impact

 

ENVIRONMENTAL AND QUALITY OF LIFE PROFILE

Water: At the same time that Nevada’s looming water crisis is growing, the arid state is rapidly becoming more populated -- thereby exacerbating the problem. From 2000 to 2006 the state added nearly half a million residents (497,272), according to Census Bureau estimates increasing by 24.9 percent.¹ Of that half-million increase in population, nearly one-third (32%) was the result of net foreign-born settlement in the state which rose by 50.3 percent. That compares with a 20.1 percent increase in the native-born population and that includes the children born to immigrants. Adding an estimate for the U.S-born children of the immigrants suggests that immigrant settlement in the state accounts for nearly half (47.9%) of the state’s current population increase.² The net increase of nearly 160,000 foreign-born residents in the state between 2000 and 2006 has resulted in a likely increased water consumption of 43 to 50 million gallons of water per day.

With limited groundwater available, Nevada gets more than three-fourths (76%) of its water from surface sources, largely the Colorado River.³ Unfortunately, due to drought and global warming, the Colorado River has seen declining runoffs annually since the year 2000, making current consumption unsustainable.⁴ Already, the river does not have enough water to meet the state allocation requirements formed nearly a century ago by the seven states that rely on the Colorado’s water. Although rules exist for allocation during shortages, prolonged shortages are creating tension among the states.⁵  According to scientists at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, Lake Mead, the vast reservoir that collects water from the Colorado River and supplies Las Vegas, could be dry within thirteen years.⁶  According to a study by the Center for American Progress, Lake Mead is already “half-empty,” and statistical models indicate that the Lake will never reach its original status again.⁷

The decline of water resources is a foreboding harbinger for agriculture in Nevada. Due to a canal breach, and lower runoffs from the Sierra snowpack, farmers faced at least a ten percent decline in water allocations in the 2008 growing season. “Basically, less water means fewer crops, less production and less money. We are looking at some unpleasant financial circumstances,” said Nevada farmer Mario G. Peraldo.⁸

Finally, to help cure Las Vegas’ water woes, Nevada is seeking to install a 250 mile pipeline to the Snake Valley watershed which spans the Nevada-Utah border. The pipeline would divert as much as 16 billion gallons of water annually from the Snake Valley and pump it to Las Vegas. In addition to contributing to unsustainable consumption, the estimated 3.5 billion dollar project cost would certainly cause a surge in city water prices.⁹

Traffic: As population growth put more traffic on the roads, the average commute for Nevada residents increased 17 percent during the 1990s to 23 minutes in 2000.This was a faster rate of increase than the national average of 14 percent.^10,11 More than two-fifths (44%) of Nevada's major urban roads are congested. Vehicle travel on Nevada's highways increased 89% from 1990 to 2003. Driving on roads in need of repair costs Nevada motorists $120 million a year in extra vehicle repairs and operating costs $81 per motorist, and congestion in the Las Vegas area costs commuters $494 per person in excess fuel and lost time.¹² Travelers in the Las Vegas area experience an annual delay of 30 hours.¹³  More than one-in-seven (16%) commuters in Nevada have a commute that is 45 minutes or more.¹⁴

Disappearing open space: Every year, Nevada loses 4,600 acres of prime farmland to development and suburban sprawl.¹⁵  More housing structures have been built in the past 12 years than any other time in the state’s history.¹⁶

Crowded housing: Studies show that a rise in crowded housing often correlates with an increase in the number of foreign-born.^17,18 In 2005 over 34,000 Nevada households lived in crowded or severely crowded housing. ¹⁹

Air pollution:Nevada has some of the highest levels of air pollution in the country, which has been linked to the state having the highest rate of adult asthma (13%).²⁰ Clark County received a grade of “F” from the American Lung Association in its “State of the Air 2005” report.²¹

Schools: The enrollment of Nevada’s K-12 student population increased by over 86,000 students between 2000 and 2006 (26.7%) ^22,23and is projected to increase by an additional 110,000 (26.9%) students by the year 2015.²⁴  Nevada’s student-teacher ratio of 19 ranks 46th in the U.S.²⁵

Nevada had an 83 percent increase in children aged 10-14 during the 1990s.The number of children aged 4 and younger increased by 58 percent. Las Vegas’ school enrollment doubled during the 1990s.²⁶ Clark County school district (which includes Las Vegas) projects that it will add 10,000 to 15,000 students every year.²⁷ Already, schools there are so crowded that students complain that they can’t find available restrooms in between classes.²⁸ The average student-teacher ratio in the district’s secondary schools is 32:1; some classes have more than 40 students.²⁹

Solid Waste: Nevada generates 1.55 tons of solid waste annually per capita.³⁰

 

ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION

The booming Las Vegas casino sector is attracting large numbers of immigrants to the city. Despite a required police background check for new hires that bars most illegal aliens seeking casino jobs, the city, nevertheless, is attracting large numbers of illegal aliens working in hotels and other jobs not requiring advanced education or skill levels and paying low wages. The presence of a large number of illegal aliens is attested to by the spread of money transfer and check cashing operations and the growth of immigration consultant services.³¹

The flood of illegal aliens moving to southern Nevada is so large that the Las Vegas ICE office admits it can’t keep up. The Las Vegas ICE office has about the same number of staff it had ten years ago, despite the fact that agents have seen a 49 percent increase in the number of illegal immigrants apprehended in the last five years.³²

The large population of illegal aliens is straining the state’s health care and criminal justice infrastructure. Eighteen percent of Clark County residents do not have health insurance and rely on the valley’s crowded emergency room for routine care; health officials believe many are illegal aliens.³³

 

Endnotes:

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