A Tale of Three Cities: Effects of United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection on Border Town Economies

Abstract

The establishment of the Homeland Security Act in 2002 created the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and its subsidiary Immigration Enforcement arms: Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and Customs and Border Protection (CBP). In 2009, the Obama administration oversaw the largest expansion in Immigration Enforcement since the department’s inception. Since then, the budget and staffing of both Immigration Enforcement arms of the DHS have steadily increased. Although an expressed purpose of the Homeland Security Act is to protect and support the economic security of the United States, the economic impact of Immigration Enforcement operations on policed communities is under researched, leaving the economic effects of ICE and CBP policing unknown. This thesis tracks five economic characteristics (poverty, unemployment, lack of labor force participation, whether individuals worked in the last year, and whether individuals are looking for work), over the years 2008-2018 in three Texas border towns: El Paso, Laredo, and McAllen. This thesis also monitors Immigration Enforcement policing using the number of ICE apprehensions and stationed CBP officers in each town over the same period. A correlation analysis is performed between each economic variable and each of the two Immigration Enforcement metrics. Linear regression analyses are then performed on economic characteristics which demonstrate significant correlation with Immigration Enforcement. This thesis seeks to begin scholarly conversation on the effects of Immigration Enforcement policing as a facet of behavioral economics resulting from policing, as well as introduce policy recommendations aimed at increasing Immigration Enforcement oversight and accountability.