In 1986 US Congress passed the Immigration reform and Control Act to stem the tide of illegal immigration. Instead of limiting immigration, the 1986 act has had the opposite effect: legal immigration has increased every year since its passage. California has been impacted more than any other state by the rising tide of immigrants. More than 1.1 milliion leval immigrants have come into California since 1986. Foreign-born residents now account for almost one-quarter of all people living in California. California residents passed Proposition 187 last year, a ballot measure that challenges the federal mandate that states must provide services to illegal aliens. In the meantime, the state's depressed economy is not coping well with the added burden of its ever-growing legal and illegal immigrant population. -from Author

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California immigration policy illegal immigration USA economic problem policy impact Immigration Reform and Control Act (1986) immigration impact