Undocumented Immigrants: Facts and Figures

The Bush administration and members of Congress have proposed granting temporary legal status to undocumented immigrant workers currently residing in the United States. Our best estimate is that there are 9.3 million undocumented immigrants in the country, of whom about 6 million are working. There are 4.5 million undocumented men, 3.2 million women, and 1.6 million children. Another 3 million children with undocumented parents are U.S.-born citizens. Almost two-thirds of undocumented immigrants live in six states: California, Texas, New York, Florida, Illinois, and New Jersey. But the undocumented population is growing fastest in other Southeastern, Midwestern and Mountain states.