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Oklahoma

Summary Demographic State Data (and Source)
Population (2008 CB est.):	3,642,361
Population (2000 Census):	3,450,654
Foreign-Born Population (2008 FAIR est.):	188,820
Foreign-Born Population (2000 Census):	131,747
Share Foreign-Born (2008 FAIR est.):	5.2%
Share Foreign-Born (2000):	3.8%
Immigrant Stock (2000 CB est.):	258,000
Share Immigrant Stock (1997 est.):	7.5%
Naturalized U.S. Citizens (2006 CB est):	57,594
Share Naturalized (2006):	32.9%
Legal Immigrant Admission (DHS 1997-2007):	35,297
Refugee Admission (DHS 1997-2007):	1,119
Illegal Alien Population (2008 FAIR est):	85,000
Projected 2050 Population - (2006 FAIR):	4,688,819

Oklahoma: Extended Immigration Data

STATE POPULATION

Using the Current Population Survey, the U.S. Census Bureau estimated that in July 2008 Oklahoma’s population had increased to 3,642,361 residents, i.e., an annual average increase of about 23,095 residents since 2000. That is a rate of increase of about 0.7 percent per year.

Net International Migration (NIM)

Based on the Current Population Survey, the Census Bureau estimated that between the 2000 Census and July 2008 the state’s population increased by about 42,895 residents from net international migration (more foreign-born arriving than leaving). That was an annual average increase of about 5,170 residents, i.e., more than one-fifth (22.4%) of the total increase (not including the children born to the immigrants after their arrival in the United States).

The 2000 Census found 3,450,654 persons resident in Oklahoma. This was an increase of 305,069 persons above the 1990 Census. The rate of increase (9.7%) was slightly less than the national average of 9.9 percent.

The 2000 population is about 80,000 more persons than the Census Bureau had expected to find in the state in 2000 when it issued its most recent state population projections in 1996. The significance of this is that the Census Bureau has concluded that much of the shortfall in their population estimates during the 1990s was due to an underestimation of the illegal alien population.

Oklahoma had the 25th greatest rate of population increase in the country between 1960-2000.

The state's population increased by four percent between 1980 and 1990 (from 3,025,487 to 3,145,585 residents).

FOREIGN-BORN POPULATION

Based on the American Community Survey (ACS), the U.S. Census Bureau estimated that the foreign-born population of Oklahoma was 174,553 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, it may underestimate the foreign-born population.

FAIR estimates that the foreign-born population of Oklahoma was about 188,820 residents in July 2008. This meant a foreign-born population share of 5.2 percent. The amount of change since the 2000 Census indicates an average annual rate of increase in the foreign-born population of about 6,875 people, which is more than one-fourth (29.8%) of the state’s annual average population increase. Since 2000, the foreign-born population has increased by 43.3 percent compared to a 4.1 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 10.4 percent share of the state’s current births is large enough to account for about 5,360 births a year. Combining the increase in the foreign-born population and estimated immigrant births suggests that immigration may account for nearly 12,240 persons added to the state’s population annually, i.e., more than half (53%) of the state’s overall population increase.

A comparison of the increase in the immigrant population since 1990 with the change in the overall population during the same period shows that immigrant settlement directly accounted for 21.7 percent of the state's overall population increase over that decade. The effect of immigration on population change is still greater when the children of the immigrants born here after their arrival are 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 31 percent, which is based on the increase in the share of those who speak a language other than English at home in Oklahoma.

The 2000 Census found that 53 percent of Oklahoma's foreign-born population had arrived in the state since 1990. This demonstrates the effects of the current mass immigration, and it is much higher than the national average (43.7%).

An indicator of the change in the immigrant population may be seen in data on the share of the population that speaks a language other than English at home. Between 1990 and 2000 the share of non-English speakers at home in Oklahoma increased by more than two-fifths, from five percent to 7.1 percent. About two-fifths (41.5%) of those who said they spoke a language other than English at home in 2000 also said they spoke English less than very well.

Speakers of Foreign Languages (at home in Oklahoma in the 2000 Census)
Spanish	141,060
German	13,445
Vietnamese	11,330
French	8,220
Cherokee	7,280
Chinese	5,250
Muskogee	4,145
Korean	3,950
Choctaw	3,375
Arabic	3,265
(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 175,978 residents, an increase of 33.6 percent since 2000. In comparison, the foreign-born population changed from 65,489 to 131,747 residents between 1990 and 2000, an increase of 101.2 percent.

The ten countries below constituted approximately 70.4% of the foreign-born population in Oklahoma in 2006.  Mexico accounted for nearly fifty percent (48.6) alone.

Foreign-Born Change Since 1990: Top Ten Countries 1990-2006
Rank	Country	1980		Country	1990		Country	2006
1	Mexico	13,686		Mexico	55,971		Mexico	85,500
2	Vietnam	5,696		Vietnam	9,958		Vietnam	8,974
3	Germany	5,502		Germany	6,144		India	6,882
4	United Kingdom	3,300		India	5,128		Germany	5,549
5	Korea	3,099		China	4,450		China	4,959
6	Canada	2,576		Korea	4,146		Canada	4,154
7	India	2,496		United Kingdom	3,814		Vietnam	3,500
8	Philippines	1,860		Canada	3,710		England	1,723
9	Japan	1,582		Philippines	3,221		Japan	1,570
10	Iran	1,536		Guatemela	2,386		United Kingdom	1,050
	All Others	24,156		All Others	32,819		All Others	52,117
	Total	65,489		Total	131,747		Total	123,861

THE IMMIGRANT STOCK

The Census Bureau estimated that there were about 258,000 people in Oklahoma 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 the population of 3,450,654, the immigrant stock share of the state's population was 7.5 percent.

As the graph below shows, the amount and share of Oklahoma’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 197,700 people to the population. Over this period, the increase in the foreign stock has accounted for 20.3 percent of the state’s population increase.

NATURALIZATION

Data from the 2006 American Community Survey indicate that 57,954 residents, or 32.9 percent, of the foreign-born population in Oklahoma were citizens, compared to 45,766 residents, or 34.7 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

Oklahoma has received 1,119 refugees over the most recent ten fiscal years (FY'97-'06), with 99 arriving in FY’06.

 

Under the Office of Refugee Resettlement's (HHS) assistance funding for FY'02 $103,401 is available for refugee employment training and other services programs in Oklahoma based on a three-year refugee settlement program covering 412 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 $628,139 and $755,214..

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 Oklahoma, overall enrollment in 2002 (620,404) was 1.9 percent above enrollment in 1993. By contrast, LEP enrollment (43,670 - 7% of all enrollment) was 121.5 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 Oklahoma as 8,364. Three schools in Oklahoma are listed as having a major concentration of these students:

• Oklahoma State University at Stillwater had enrollment of 1,770 foreign students, 7.5% of total enrollment.
• University of Oklahoma at Norman had enrollment of 1,493 foreign students, 5.5% of total enrollment
• University Central Oklahoma had enrollment of 1,281 foreign students, 8.0% of total enrollment

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

ILLEGAL ALIENS

FAIR Estimate - FAIR estimates the state’s illegal alien population as of 2008 is as many as 85,000 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 Oklahoma was 46,000 as of January 2000. This number 25,000 higher than the INS' 1996 estimate.

Other Estimates - The Pew Hispanic Center estimates the illegal alien population of the state at 50,000 to 75,000 as of 2005.

COST OF ILLEGAL ALIENS

Incarceration Costs

The INS estimated in February 2003 that the illegal alien population in Oklahoma as of January 2000 was 46,000 residents. This was more than double the previous INS estimate that in October 1996 the resident illegal alien population in Oklahoma had reached 21,000 from an estimated 17,000 four years earlier.

Oklahoma 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 Oklahoma has received were:

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 262 prisoner years of detention. By FY’02, the state’s reported illegal alien detention rose by 173 percent to 715 prisoner years, while compensation fell by 25 percent and since has decreased further.

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 Oklahoma, the proposed payment in fiscal year 2004 is $1,096,958.

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 Oklahoma taxpayer $161.1 million dollars annually. This cost was partially for educating students who were themselves illegally in the country ($67.1million) and in part for the education of their siblings born in the United States to illegal residents ($94 million).

Projected Fiscal Costs

In 2006 we estimated that Oklahoma taxpayers are currently burdened with annual costs of about $207 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 $43356 million per year in 2010 and to $624 million per year in 2020

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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Oklahoma: Immigrant Admission

Oklahoma Immigrant Admissions by Fiscal Year
1997	3,157
1998	2,273
1999	2,376
2000	4,586
2001	3,492
2002	4,229
2003	2,385
2004	3,506
2005	4,702
2006	4,591
Total	35,297

Recent immigrant admissions have increased by about 369 percent since adoption of the current immigration system in 1965. During the 1965-'69 period, annual admissions averaged about 830 immigrants. During the 2002-'06 period, admissions averaged about 3,885 immigrants.

The charts below show recent immigrant admissions and the cumulative immigrant admissions data since 1965. The number of annual admissions has ranged from 741 in FY'66 to 6,403 in FY'91. The cumulative total of admissions to Oklahoma between fiscal years 1965 and 2002 was about 109,980 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 Oklahoma was 11,033 (6,907 pre-1982 residents and 4,126 agricultural workers).

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	-	-	-	27	27	39	28	42	-	36	199
Canada	59	99	90	88	53	50	55	135	92	107	828
China *	349	245	125	170	175	115	135	257	181	173	1,925
Colombia	17	17	18	11	26	22	11	33	25	52	232
Cuba	4	1	2	7	7	3	3	13	13	6	59
Dom. Rep.	4	4	2	5	4	2	2	5	6	0	34
Ecuador	3	-	4	9	8	9	5	9	12	8	67
El Salvador	17	5	10	14	20	5	9	24	21	25	150
Germany	97	95	51	-	61	29	44	68	60	51	556
Guatemala	29	17	13	40	37	20	26	54	43	67	346
Guyana	2	0	0	2	0	0	2	7	-	4	17
Haiti	2	6	0	3	2	0	6	3	6	2	30
Honduras	11	-	-	-	31	28	10	16	-	25	121
India	178	194	268	216	245	204	186	288	284	261	2,324
Iran	111	82	72	98	89	57	58	101	105	77	850
Ireland	12	8	-	-	1	0	1	1	-	3	26
Jamaica	10	2	6	10	4	5	7	9	14	9	76
Japan	-	23	-	-	21	16	18	36	21	33	168
Korea	90	71	57	69	93	53	41	95	62	66	397
Mexico	574	513	660	931	1,120	812	780	1,565	877	1,524	9,356
Nicaragua	-	-	-	-	1	1	1	12	13	9	37
Nigeria	-	-	30	75	57	40	46	92	-	53	393
Pakistan	14	39	47	50	50	65	60	86	111	83	605
Peru	27	20	34	77	51	44	21	68	50	65	457
Philippines	140	117	105	136	105	60	55	174	108	148	1,148
Poland	12	13	6	11	10	5	10	5	6	13	91
Sov. Un. *	23	34	42	34	77	42	43	144	109	155	703
Trin.& Tob.	-	9	-	-	4	5	5	24	-	10	57
U. Kingdom	75	86	59	84	52	32	43	92	87	89	699
Vietnam	575	527	514	580	206	131	296	365	330	310	3,834
Yugo. *	-	-	15	37	6	5	14	31	13	40	161
Other	507	501	562	727	514	374	355	732	843	752	5,840
Total	2,942	2,728	2,792	3,511	3,157	2,273	2,376	4,586	3,492	4,229	32,086

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 more than four-fifths (81.8%) of all immigrant settlement and adjustment in Oklahoma during this ten-year period. Immigrants from Mexico accounted for nearly three-tenths (29.2%) of Oklahoma's new immigrants since 1993. When the admissions from Mexico are added to those from Vietnam, India and China, they amount to more than half (54.3%) of all of the newcomers during those ten years.

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Oklahoma: Immigration Impact

State Population (2006 CB estimate)	3,579,212
State Population in 2000	3,454,508
Average Annual Change 2000-2006	0.6%
Foreign Born Population 2006 1	167,255
Foreign Born Share 2006	4.7%
Foreign Born Population 2000	131,747
Foreign Born Share 2000	3.8%
Average Annual Change 2000-2006	4.3%
Population Projection 2010	3.6 million
Population Projection 2025	3.8 million
Population Projection 2050 (FAIR)	4.4 million

All numbers are from the U.S. Census Bureau unless otherwise noted.
Additional Census Bureau, INS, and other immigration-related data are available for Oklahoma.

Population Change

Oklahoma’s population increased by 9.8 percent between 1990 and 2000, and by 3.6 percent between 2000 and 2006, bringing Oklahoma’s total population to approximately 3.6 million. 

Approximately 28.5 percent of the total population increase between 2000 and 2006 in Oklahoma was directly attributable to immigrants.

FAIR estimates the illegal alien population in 2005 at 83,000, which ranks 22nd in the U.S. for the FAIR estimate.

This number is 45% above the U.S. government estimate of 46,000 in 2000, and 419% above the 1990 estimate of 16,000.

According to an estimate of the Pew Hispanic Center, in 2005 there were an estimated 50,000 to 75,000 illegal aliens living in Oklahoma. ²

FAIR’s projected annual fiscal costs to Oklahoma taxpayers for emergency medical care, education and incarceration resulting if an amnesty is adopted for illegal residents.
Current	2010	2020
$207,000,000	$356,000,000	$624,000,000

POPULATION PROFILE

FOREIGN-BORN POPULATION

ENVIRONMENTAL AND QUALITY OF LIFE PROFILE

Traffic: As population growth put more traffic on the roads, the average commute for Oklahoma residents increased from 19 minutes in 1990 to 20.1 minutes in 2005. ⁴, ⁵42 percent of Oklahoma's major roads are in poor or mediocre condition, and vehicle travel on Oklahoma's highways increased 38% from 1990 to 2003. The Oklahoma Department of Transportation has a $583.4 million backlog of deferred maintenance, and Driving on roads in need of repair costs Oklahoma motorists $969 million a year in extra vehicle repairs and operating costs --- $413 per motorist. Congestion in the Oklahoma City area costs commuters $245 per person per year in excess fuel and lost time, and congestion in the Tulsa area costs commuters $247 per person per year in excess fuel and lost time. ⁶

Travelers in the Tulsa area experience an annual delay of 12 hours. ⁷   8 percent of commuters in Oklahoma have a commute that is 45 minutes or more. ⁸

Between 1991 and 2001, vehicle miles traveled increased 31 percent in Oklahoma. Between 1996 and 2001, the percent of badly congested urban interstates increased from 20 percent to 25 percent. ⁹

Disappearing open space: Each year, Oklahoma loses 35,300 acres of open space and farmland due to development. ¹⁰

A study of urban sprawl between 1970 and 1990 that calculated the impact of population increase and per capita land use found that 307.7 square miles of additional land were consumed by urban sprawl in the Oklahoma metropolitan area, and 46.8 percent of that sprawl was attributable to population increase. In the Tulsa metro area sprawl consumed an additional 124.3 square miles and population increase accounted for 46.7 percent of the increase. ¹¹

Crowded housing: In 2005 over 30,000 Oklahoma households were defined as crowded or severely crowded by housing authorities. ¹² Studies show that a rise in crowded housing often correlates with an increase in the number of foreign-born.¹³, ¹⁴

Air pollution: As population increases, pollution usually rises along with it. Tulsa has failed the Environmental Protection Agency’s new national clear air standards and has until 2007 to meet the standard though a series of voluntary steps. If the standard isn’t met, then the area could face a number of clean air mandates, including restrictions on emissions, tighter regulations on industry, and costly changes in fueling equipment.¹⁵Tulsa county received a grade of “F’ from the American Lung Association in their “State of the Air 2005” report. Carter county received a “D”, and Oklahoma and Mc Clain Counties received a “C”. ¹⁶

Poverty: In 2005 21.3 percent of immigrants in Oklahoma had incomes below the poverty level, and increase of 18.8 percent since 2000. Among non-citizens, the poverty rate climbs to 26.4 percent.¹⁷

Education: Between 2000 and 2006 Oklahoma’s K-12 student enrollment increased by over 7,000 students, ¹⁸, ¹⁹ and is projected to increase by an additional 8,000 students by the year 2015. ²⁰ Oklahoma’s student-teacher ratio of 15.2 currently ranks 32^nd in the U.S. ²¹

Solid Waste: Oklahoma generates 1.28 tons of solid waste per capita. ²²

Endotes:

1. FAIR estimate based on the 2006 Current Population Survey.
2. "Estimates of the Unauthorized Migrant Population for States based on the March 2005 CPS", Pew Hispanic Center.
3. Martin, Jack. “Breaking the Piggy Bank: How Illegal Immigration is Sending Schools into the Red,” A Report by the Federation for American Immigration Reform.
4. “Table DP-1-4, Profile of General Demographic Characteristics: 2000,” Census 2000, U.S. Census Bureau.
5. Selected Economic Characteristics: 2005 Data Set - 2005 American Community Survey, American Fact Finder, U.S. Census Bureau.
6. Report Card for America's Infrastructure 2005," American Society of Civil Engineers.
7. "The 2005 Urban Mobility Report", Texas Transportation Institute.
8. “U.S. Population 2007 Data Sheet,” Population Reference Bureau.
9. Janet Pearson, “Interstate System Faces Tough Challenges,” Tulsa World, February 2, 2003.
10. “State Rankings by Acreage and Rate of Non-FederalLand Developed,” Natural Resources Conservation Service, United States Department of Agriculture
11. Beck, Roy and Leon Kolankiewicz, “Weighing Sprawl Factors in Large U.S. Cities,” NumbersUSA, March 2001.
12. Selected Housing Characteristics: 2005 Data Set - 2005 American Community Survey, American Fact Finder, U.S. Census Bureau.
13. Haya El Nasser, “U.S. Neighborhoods Grow More Crowded,” USA Today, July 7, 2002.
14. Randy Capps, “Hardship Among Children of Immigrants: Findings from the 1999 National Survey of America’s Families,” Urban Institute, 2001.
15. Associated Press, “Compact Keeps Tulsa off EPA’s 'Dirty Air’ List,” Tulsa World, January 7, 2003.
16. “State of the Air 2005: Oklahoma”, American Lung Association.
17. “OklahomaState Factsheet,” Migration Information Source, Migration Policy Institute.
18. "Overview of Public Elementary and Secondary Schools and Districts: School Year 1999-2000," NationalCenter for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education.
19. "Public Elementary and Secondary School Student Enrollment, High School Completions, and Staff From the Common Core of Data: School Year 2005-06', NationalCenter for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, June 2007.
20. Projections of Education Statistics to 2015, NationalCenter for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education.
21. "Public Elementary and Secondary School Student Enrollment, High School Completions, and Staff From the Common Core of Data: School Year 2005-06', NationalCenter for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, June 2007
22. Report Card for America's Infrastructure 2005," American Society of Civil Engineers.

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