Home County Bannock Guest Columnist ID Representative David Leavitt: The Borrowed Economy

Guest Columnist ID Representative David Leavitt: The Borrowed Economy

March 1, 2026

February 28, 2026

The Borrowed Economy
Illegal Immigration and the Cost of Dependency

By: Idaho Dist. 25 Representative David Leavitt

ID State Representative David Leavitt (LD25); Photo Credit: David Leavitt

We often measure economic strength by output. If dollars are moving and businesses are expanding, we call it prosperity. But not all growth is created equal. Some growth is earned. Some growth is borrowed.

A borrowed economy expands through shortcuts. It borrows money instead of living within its means. It borrows labor instead of allowing wages to rise naturally. Over time, dependency becomes embedded, and what appears to be strength begins to mask structural weakness.

Illegal immigration is one of the clearest examples of borrowed growth.

According to Pew Research, the number of illegal immigrants in the United States reached approximately 14 million in 2023. About 9.7 million were participating in the workforce, representing roughly 5.6 percent of all workers nationwide. That is not marginal. It is structural.

In industries such as agriculture, construction, hospitality, and food processing, the concentration is significantly higher. When labor supply expands at that scale, wage growth moderates. Employers face less pressure to raise compensation when a large pool of lower-cost labor is consistently available. The Heritage Foundation argues that reducing illegal immigration would tighten labor markets and restore upward wage pressure for lower-income American workers. That reflects basic supply and demand economics.

But workforce participation tells only part of the story.

Pew also reports that illegal immigrants lived in approximately 7.5 million U.S. households in 2023, encompassing roughly 26 million total people. About 4.6 million American-born children under 18 lived with at least one illegal immigrant parent. Those figures translate into classroom seats, housing demand, medical services, and infrastructure strain.

Public education does not distinguish by immigration status. Following the Supreme Court’s 1982 decision in Plyler v. Doe, states cannot deny free K-12 education based on immigration status. Federal immigration enforcement remains federal. The fiscal responsibility for education and local services remains with states and taxpayers.

If economic contribution is going to be cited, then the full ledger must be examined. When labor supply expands outside lawful participation, private industries gain flexibility while public systems absorb the cost. Wages soften in sectors where working-class Americans compete. Housing tightens. Public systems stretch thinner.

This is the borrowed economy. Private benefits are concentrated while public costs are distributed. Growth built on structural illegality is fragile. Restoring lawful market discipline is not hostility. It is economic responsibility. Durable prosperity requires nothing less.

Pew Research Center. U.S. Unauthorized Immigrant Population Reached a Record 14 Million in 2023. By Jeffrey S. Passel and Jens Manuel Krogstad, Pew Research Center, August 21, 2025.

In a public hearing, an Idaho dairy industry representative acknowledged the extent to which the sector depends on foreign labor and the vulnerability it would face under a strict I-9 audit. The video speaks for itself.