Dr. Ryan Allen: Immigrants’ role in local and state economies

May 7, 2026

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Recent Census data shows that, amid significant declines in immigration, population growth has slowed or turned negative in about 75 percent of U.S. counties. On May 7, 2026, SciLine interviewed Dr. Ryan Allen, a professor and associate dean for research at the University of Minnesota, where he studies immigrant communities.

Declared interests:

Dr. Allen partners with the Center for Migration Studies to produce annual estimates of the unauthorized immigrant population in the U.S.

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Raw, full-length interview video & log with timecodes (upon request via form below)

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ANCHOR
NEW RESEARCH ESTIMATES THE NUMBER OF UNDOCUMENTED IMMIGRANTS IN THE U-S CLIMBED TO MORE THAN 14-MILLION IN 20-24… A SIGNIFICANT INCREASE SINCE 20-20.

VO
DOCTOR RYAN ALLEN IS A PROFESSOR AT THE UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA… STUDYING IMMIGRANT COMMUNITIES.
HE PARTNERED WITH THE CENTER FOR MIGRATION STUDIES OF NEW YORK TO LOOK AT THE SIZE AND CHARACTERISTICS OF THE UNDOCUMENTED IMMIGRANT POPULATION IN THE U-S.
KEY TAKEAWAYS… THE POPULATION GREW TO MORE THAN 14-MILLION-PEOPLE IN 20-24… THE LATEST DATA AVAILABLE.
AND THAT’S MORE THAN A TWO-MILLION INCREASE SINCE 20-23… AND MORE THAN A FOUR-MILLION INCREASE SINCE 20-20.
DOCTOR ALLEN SAYS MANY PEOPLE ARE LEAVING THEIR COUNTRIES OVER HEALTH AND SAFETY CONCERNS… WHILE OTHERS ARE SEEKING BETTER ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITIES FOR THEIR FAMILIES… OFTEN FILLING JOBS IN AGRICULTURE AND CONSTRUCTION THAT U-S EMPLOYERS STRUGGLE TO STAFF.
THE RESEARCH ALSO HIGHLIGHTS ABOUT TWO-THIRDS OF UNDOCUMENTED IMMIGRANTS HAVE LIVED IN THE U-S FOR MORE THAN FIVE-YEARS… AND ABOUT A THIRD FOR MORE THAN 15-YEARS.

SOT
Duration: 1:08
Super: Dr. Ryan Allen – Professor, University of Minnesota
“So this is a long-term and stable population in many cases. We know over a fifth have some kind of college experience. We know that over half report speaking English very well or fluently, and so one of the misconceptions, I think, that we have about this population is that most of them have come recently and that they are not in a position to contribute to the American economy and our society, and the characteristics that we see in the population indicate that that’s not true, right? That they are quite the opposite of those things. The last thing I would mention is IN thinking about their economic contributions, we know they are in the labor force in a really high proportion, relative to the U.S. Population, a larger proportion, over 70 percent of undocumented immigrants are in labor force, a very small amount of them are unemployed. It’s very clear that they are interested in making economic contributions and in fact engaged in doing that.”

VO
DOCTOR ALLEN SAYS IMMIGRANT AND U-S-BORN WORKERS TEND TO COMPLEMENT EACH OTHER… SO WHEN THE IMMIGRANT WORKFORCE SHRINKS… IT CAN HURT JOB OPPORTUNITIES FOR U-S-BORN WORKERS.
HERE IN TEXAS… DATA ESTIMATES MORE THAN TWO-MILLION UNDOCUMENTED IMMIGRANTS LIVED IN THE STATE IN 20-24.

NOTE: Find your state-specific data HERE.

Raw, full-length interview covers:

Implications of local population declines or slowing population growth;
His new research on the number of undocumented immigrants living in the U.S. in 2024, along with the demographic, social, and economic characteristics of this population;
The economic effects of local surges in immigration enforcement, including in places where a significant share of immigrants temporarily or permanently withdraw from the workforce and economy (due to being detained or deported, or sheltering at home);
Basic information on role of immigrants in local and state economies, as both workers and consumers;
Which industries depend most heavily on immigrant workers, and why; and
If immigrants’ presence in the workforce were to decrease (due to factors such as decreased immigration or mass deportations), whether and how it might give a boost to American workers.