There is little reason to believe, based on its contents, that'd. 2611 would have had any different consequences other than to increase federal welfare roles by magnitudes and, due to the enormous scope of the bill, increase poverty in this country (Rector). Effects Different For Men and Women?

Would the amnesty provision for undocumented foreign workers in the U.S. Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA) of 1986 affect outcomes in the labor market for those workers, and if so, were the affects different for men and women. Classical economic theory holds wages should have risen for both men and women foreign workers after the amnesty provision was implemented. Research is presented showing that raises did indeed rise for both men and women newly legalized workers, but that so did unemployment rates. This is attributed to the increased mobility of legal workers, and of the eligibility of women for the social services given mothers of families. Amnesty is found to have increased the efficiency of the U.S. labor market and led to a noticeable improvement in the economic status of affected workers (Amuedo-Dorantes, Bansak and Raphael).

Conclusion

It is a debate that will go on and on, perhaps, never to end in a satisfactory conclusion. We are at a time in our country's history that clamors for restraint in federal government spending and programs. Is universal healthcare our primary goal right now at a cost of a trillion or so dollars? Do we have any idea how amnesty to illegal immigrants right now would impact that national goal? Well, we do, sort of. We know that our legislators are reassuring the American public that illegal immigrants...

We know by that, that tens of millions of "newly amnestied" immigrants will be included, if not immediately then in the near future. They must be. It will happen. The financial impact on our economy in addition to the trillion dollars? Enormous.
If at any time in our history, now is the time for federal restraint. The American public is angry. We are overspent and underemployed. We know that amnesty will impact our economy in significant ways -- mostly negative. For now, with the economy in the dumps, that is all we need to know.

Bibliography

Amuedo-Dorantes, Catalina, Cynthia Bansak and Steven Raphael. "Gender Differences in the Labor Market: Impact of IRCA's Amnesty Provisions." American Economic Review (2007): 412-416.

Davidson, Adam. "Q&A: Illegal Immigrants and the U.S. Economy." 30 March 2006. npr.org. 23 Nov 2009 .

Fairus.org. "U.S. Legislative Immigration Update." 20 April 2009. Rightsidenews.com. 24 November 2009 .

Orrenius, Pia and Madeline Zavoday. "What are the Consequences of an Amnesty for Undocumented Immigrants." May 2004. Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta. 23 Nov 2009 .

Phillips, Julie and Douglas Massey. "The New Labor Market: Immigrants and Wages after IRCA." May 1999. JSTOR. 23 Nov 2009 .

Rector, Robert. "Amnesty and Continued Low Skill Immigration Will Substantially Raise Welfare Costs and Poverty." 12 May 2006. The Heritage Foundation. 23 Nov 2009 .

Said, Carolyn. "THE IMMIGRATION DEBATE Effect on economy depends on viewpoint." 26 May 2006. SFGate. 23 Nov 2009 .