These calculations are based on an important assumption, however, which is
that large influxe of immigrants do not reduce job opportunities available to
natives. If the presence of immigrant workers depresses native’s wages, then the
overall impact of immigration on the poverty rate will be higher. Evidence on the
labor market effects of immigration is mixed (see Borjas, 1999, for an overview of
this literature), but it seems safest to consider these estimates as lower bounds.