The first in-depth fiscal analysis of the Maryland “Dream Act” claims that the law would yield a $66 million long-term gain for each yearly group of undocumented students allowed to pay in-state tuition at state community colleges and universities.
The Dream Act was signed into law in the spring of 2011 but was promptly stymied by a Republican-led referendum petition. It is one of four controversial statewide ballot questions voters will settle on Nov. 6.
It would allow certain illegal immigrants to pay in-state tuition at Maryland community colleges and, later, universities. The qualifications include:
- Graduating from a state high school after attending at least three years
- Proving that students or their parents pay state taxes
- Applying for permanent U.S. residency and for the U.S. Selective Service
Qualifying students would start at a two-year community college. When they apply to a four-year school, they would be evaluated as part of the out-of-state applicant pool.
Similar laws are in effect in a dozen other states, but Maryland’s version—if it survives Election Day—would be the first to be approved by voters.
Dream Act opponents were able to build support in part by questioning the law’s murky details, The Washington Post reported. But the new study, released Monday, suggests that the Dream Act will be a $66 million net gain for each class of students.
Conducted by the Maryland Institute for Policy Analysis and Research at the University of Maryland Baltimore County, the study weighs the initial costs of the students' lowered tuition payments against the benefits of improving the student’s long-term earning potential and decreasing their dependence on government support.
Some of the report’s key findings:
- 435 students per year will enroll in community college under the Dream Act
- Those students will together cost their county’s government $3.6 million, another $3.6 million for the state, and $200,000 for the federal government
- Presuming that each student will continue living in Maryland, the net gain from each year’s crop of Dream Act students will come to $66 million.
"The initial costs of the investment in education will be more than offset by increased tax revenues and lower government spending on incarceration and other government programs that result from a more educated citizenry," its authors wrote.
The report comes on the heels of DREAMers’ last and biggest public demonstration, a rally on Saturday in which hundreds of students and activists marched from Langley Park to the University of Maryland-College Park.
Watch NBC4’s video of the rally here and read The Washington Post’s coverage here.
Meanwhile, the Republican-led campaign against the Dream Act—which so easily collected more than twice the number of signatures needed to block the Dream Act from taking effect last year—appears to be languishing.
The grassroots effort mustered a few events this summer but the movement has shown little sign of having maintained its “fever pitch” from last year, reports The Baltimore Sun.
"Since it made it to the referendum stage, there is no umbrella committee that's organized and funded to promote it," Sen. Edward R. Reilly told The Sun. "It's still a hot-button issue when I talk to people one-on-one, but there's nobody pushing for it."
Germantown resident Brad Botwin, director of the anti-illegal immigrant group Help Save Maryland, told The Sun that HSM will be airing radio ads in the coming weeks.
This is the biggest "duh" of all time. It takes some seriously twisted logic to come to a different conclusion. Hence why most Marylanders are voting for this, despite the ongoing chest-beating from various racists on this site (no, I'm not saying all opponents are racists).
Why is it so EFFing hard to comprehend that the conversation really should have stopped at the words illegal immigrant? If this Dream Act is really about helping immigrants get a "leg up" in our society then why do legal immigrants (aka documented immigrants) have to pay full out of state tuition and in many cases out of country tuition even if they live here in Maryland for the required time to establish residency? If we really want to improve the education levels of our society why not put this money to far better use by improving the quality of education for the inner city children that were actually born here in Maryland? Could it be because the Democrats here in Maryland already know they have their votes locked up so there is no need to pander to them like they are to Hispanic voters?
"After they graduate though, what's the point? It's a federal felony to hire one." Hence the requirement that students be in the process of applying for permanent U.S. residency and for the U.S. Selective Service. Go ahead and bog down these kids for no reason. Then in your next rant we get to hear you whine about how they're all worthless immigrants who take more than they give. Never mind the fact it's people like you that try to hold everyone else down for whatever reason.
Calling an illegal immigrant an undocumented immigrant is like calling a drug dealer an unlicensed pharmacist.
.... •Proving that students or their parents pay state taxes .... If it can be proven that the parents of said childeren are here --why haven't the parents been turned over to/reported to ICE for subsequent deportation?
hard earned money down the drain to support people, many of whom it seems don't want to become citizens and then tell them it is alright to go ahead and vote; a right given us by our Constrittution which is more and more being ignored?
How does a person who is "undocumented" pay taxes? Now I do not want to see the BS answers of the left like, "they pay sales tax" or "they pay tax when they buy gasoline." I am simply asking how does an "undocumented" immigrant pay income or property tax because those are the only two taxes that matter when it comes to funding education. Well and the alleged new casino taxes but we all know that is not really how it is going to work.
So what you are saying is it is OK for illegal immigrants to break the law by being here in the first place but now it is also OK for them to be drug king pins that can afford a house in this market and or commit identity theft to get back those taxes they paid?