Report: State Gained 43,000 Illegal Aliens in Two Years

Colorado saw an influx of about 43,000 illegal aliens between 2021 and 2023, according to a new report from the Pew Research Center.

The report found that the state’s unauthorized immigrant population increased from 160,000 in 2021 to more than 200,000 by 2023. Most of that growth was concentrated in and around Denver, the Denver News Gazette reported.

City officials estimated that approximately 43,000 illegal aliens entered Denver during the period, with about 20,000 remaining in the city. The Gazette reported that the influx has cost Denver taxpayers at least $100 million.

Nationally, Pew estimated that 14 million illegal aliens were living in the United States in 2023, surpassing the previous peak of 12.2 million recorded in 2007. The research center attributed the increase to changes in federal immigration policy.

“The increase from 2021 to 2023 was driven primarily by growth in the number of unauthorized immigrants who were living in the U.S. with some protections from deportation, such as immigrants paroled into the country and asylum seekers,” the Pew report said.

According to Pew, about six million illegal immigrants entered the U.S. in 2023, twice the number from 2022, as asylum rules were eased. By 2023, unauthorized immigrants accounted for one in four migrants entering the country, the report found.

Pew noted that the trend began to slow after the Trump administration reinstated stricter rules and started denying additional applications, though it said the full impact of those changes will take time to measure.

Six states were reported to have between 500,000 and 2.3 million illegal immigrants each: California, Texas, Florida, New York, New Jersey, and Illinois.

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