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JACKSON, Miss – Illegal immigration is hurting Mississippi taxpayers, according to a report released today by State Auditor Shad White.

“The illegal immigration problem in Mississippi is spiraling out of control and costing taxpayers millions,” said State Auditor Shad White. “If this problem is not resolved, our public schools, hospitals and prisons will continue to lose enormous amounts of money that we could have spent on our own citizens.”

Analysts at the Office of the State Auditor estimate that there are at least There are currently 22,000 illegal immigrants living in Mississippi. Using conservative estimates, analysts then estimated that illegal immigration cost Mississippi taxpayers over 100 million dollars annually.

The report shows that these costs are driven by spending on education, healthcare and public safety. Mississippi taxpayers pay approximately:

• 25 million US dollars to teach illegal immigrants in public schools from grades 1 to 12
• 77 million US dollars to provide medical care to illegal immigrants and their children
• 1.7 million US dollars to imprison illegal immigrants

The full report, titled “How Illegal Immigration Hurts Taxpayers,” can be found on the auditor’s website under the “Reports” tab and search for “immigration.”

MageeNews.com is the online source for news and opinion from Simpson and surrounding counties and the state of Mississippi.