Leyda Becker, Festival Board member and Bowling Green’s International Communities Liaison announced the completion of a study concerning the economic impact of immigrants in Warren County this week.  Bowling Green was selected last year along with 25 other cities to be part of the Gateways for Growth program. The program analyzes how foreign born populations can be better integrated into local workforces. The current role of immigrants in the workforce was examined as a starting point. Findings included that the foreign born in Warren County paid more than $64 million in taxes, contributed $564.3 million to the county’s gross domestic product and held $170 million in spending power in 2016.

The study also showed that immigrants were responsible for 32.2 percent of the population growth from 2011 – 2016.  Whereas the county’s population increased by 15.4 percent overall, the immigrant population increased 86.6 percent in that time period.

In a new release about the study, John Feinblatt, president of New American Economy said: “Immigration fuels economic growth, and that’s certainly the case in a growing Warren County.  As newcomers help keep the tax base strong and local companies in business, Warren County’s willingness to welcome immigrants is proving a smart investment.”

Read more about the the press conference in the Bowling Green Daily News.  A pdf with more details concerning the economic impact of immigrants in Warren County is included with the article.

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“I think the true test of the culture is seen in September at the International Festival when thousands of people come together,” Kantosky said of the annual event at Circus Square Park.” – Chris Kantosky, chief operating officer Bowling Green International Center of Kentucky. (bgdailynews.com)

The above quote was mentioned in a July 2 Bowling Green Daily News article entitled “Some worry about consequences of less immigration”. That day’s paper also featured a piece called “Immigrants have a major impact on local economy”. Both articles were by reporter Wes Swietek and contained interesting details relating to our local foreign-born population.

The former article reports that according to the U.S. Census Bureau, Bowling Green now counts 14.3% of its population as foreign-born or 8,587 residents compared to 53,000 which are native-born. The recent growth has been rapid, increasing by 96% between 2000 and 2015.

The latter article asserts that “Kentucky’s 2nd Congressional District, which includes Warren County, had about 28,000 immigrant residents with $379.7 million in spending power. The immigrants paid $130 million in state and federal taxes in 2014, according to the report.” It also states that immigrants are 6.6 percent more likely to become entrepreneurs than their native-born counterparts and there are currently 758 immigrant entrepreneurs in the district. The foreign-born population makes up 13.5 percent of our local workforce.

To read the articles visit the links below:

• Immigrants have major impact on local economy 
• Some worry about consequences of less immigration

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