About Idaho
Idaho’s population increased by 29 percent (approximately 287,000 people) between 1990 and 2000. Growth during this decade brings its population to 1.3 million people. Idaho is the fifth fastest growing state in the country. The city of Boise increased by 46 percent and is the seventh fastest growing city in the nation between 1990 and 2000. Boise County increased by 90 percent.

Immigration to Idaho
During the 1990s, Idaho’s immigrant population more than doubled, increasing by 122 percent. Idaho gained approximately 35,000 immigrants during the decade, bringing the total number of foreign-born residents in the state to 64,000. This increase in the foreign-born population during the 1990s accounted for 12 percent of the state’s total population increase. About 166,000 people in Idaho are immigrants or the children of immigrants, which accounts for 13 percent of the state’s population. 47 percent of Idaho’s immigrant population has arrived in the state since 1990, which demonstrates the impact of recent policies of mass immigration. The Census Bureau projects that Idaho’s population will grow by 29 percent between 2000 and 2025, to 1.7 million.

Illegal Immigration to Idaho
In Idaho, unemployment is on the rise. In part, this is due to the wave of immigrants flooding into the state faster than jobs can be created. As of December 2002, Kootenai County, Idaho’s third fastest growing county, faced an eight percent unemployment rate. The national average is six percent. The Idaho Department of Labor states that “population growth exceeding job growth” is the primary reason.

Incarceration of illegal immigrants is a challenge faced by Idaho. The state has received partial compensation under the federal State Criminal Alien Assistance Program (SCAAP) that was established in 1994 to compensate the states and local jurisdictions for incarceration of "undocumented," aliens who are serving time for a felony conviction or at least two misdemeanors. The amount of SCAAP awards has been declining in both total distributions and even more as a share of the state’s expenses. In 1999 Idaho received 38.6% of its costs. SCAAP data indicate that Idaho's illegal alien inmate population had increased by 68 percent from the 188 inmate years in 1999 to 316 inmate years in 2002, while compensation was virtually unchanged, and subsequently dropped sharply.

Under the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act, hospitals with emergency rooms are required to treat and stabilize patients with emergency medical needs regardless of their immigration status and ability to pay. In 2003, Congress enacted an appropriation of $250 million per year, for up to four years, to help offset some of the costs due to use of these service by illegal immigrants. This amount has been allocated among the states based upon estimates of the illegal alien population and data on the apprehension of illegal aliens in each state. This amount compensates only a fraction of the medical outlays. For Idaho, the proposed payment in fiscal year 2004 is $453,092. According to the USCIS,19,000 illegal aliens resided in Idaho as of 2000, however this number is substantially higher today.