Municipality, NAE Release Anchorage-Specific Data on New Americans’ Contributions to Local Economy

Municipality, NAE Release Anchorage-Specific Data on New Americans’ Contributions to Local Economy

ANCHORAGE, AK – Today at noon, Anchorage Mayor Ethan Berkowitz, First Lady Dr. Mara Kimmel, and AEDC President Bill Popp will host a “Lunchtime Talk” to discuss the economic impacts of new Americans in Anchorage.

At the event, sponsored by the UAA Institute of Social and Economic Research, New American Economy and Municipality of Anchorage will release a research brief that examines the economic and demographic contributions of immigrants in the Municipality of Anchorage. It shows that immigrants positively impact the Anchorage economy through entrepreneurship, workforce participation, and spending power.

“The American economy has long been fueled by the ingenuity and moxie of people who came to this country from other places. Anchorage benefits when newcomers have the opportunity to find jobs and create businesses that contribute our community’s prosperity,” stated Mayor Berkowitz.

The report, New Americans in Anchorage, finds that in 2014:

• Immigrants in Anchorage contributed $1.9 billion to the local GDP.
• New American households held $567 million in spending power.
• New Americans in Anchorage make up a significant share of the labor force in several of the city’s key industries, representing 19.2 percent of recreation and accommodation workers and 14.1 percent of healthcare and Social Assistance employees.
• New Americans are more likely to own their own businesses than Anchorage residents born in the United States. Immigrants represent 14.5 percent of the self-employed population in Anchorage, and in 2014 generated $37 million in business income.

“This study shows the pivotal role that immigrants play in keeping jobs and spending power in Alaska,” said John Feinblatt, Chairman of the New American Economy. “In Anchorage’s manufacturing industry alone, new Americans have created and preserved over a thousand local jobs, which otherwise would have vanished or moved elsewhere.”

Anchorage is one of twenty communities selected for Gateways for Growth Challenge, an opportunity from NAE and Welcoming America that invited communities across the United States to apply for support for the development and implementation of multi-sector strategic plans for welcoming and integrating new Americans. It is one of only five communities to receive a matching grant, thanks to generous support from Wells Fargo and  Alaska’s Department of Commerce, Community and Economic Development.

To view the full report, click here.

CONTACTS: 

Sarah D. Roy
New American Economy
[email protected]

Myer Hutchinson
Municipality of Anchorage
[email protected]