New Americans in Houston

The Partnership for a New American Economy has developed a series of research briefs that examine the demographic and economic contributions of immigrant communities in counties and cities across the United States. The latest report in the series focuses on Houston, Texas. The brief shows that Houston’s 1.3 million immigrant residents–who account for roughly 24.7 percent of the area’s population–positively impact the local economy through their high rates of workforce participation, large tax contributions, and spending power.

The report, “New Americans in Houston,” finds that in 2014:

• Immigrants in Houston contributed roughly $116.5 billion to the economy through consumption and tax contributions.
• Foreign-born households held $31.8 billion in spending power–more than 25.8 percent of the county’s total spending power–and paid almost $3 billion in state and local taxes.
• Immigrants make up 32 percent of Houston’s labor force, and are the majority share of workers in some of the county’s most important industries. For example, immigrants make up 55.9 percent of construction workers, and in 2014, they created or preserved 64,224 local manufacturing jobs.
• Between 2000 and 2014, immigration to Houston increased the area’s total housing value by $127.8 billion.
• In 2014, 103,056 immigrants worked for their own businesses in Houston, generating nearly $2.5 billion in business income.

This report is released as part of the the Gateways for Growth Challenge, an opportunity from PNAE 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.