New research from New American Economy shows that immigrants paid more than $2.1 Billion in taxes in central Ohio in 2019. The new report, New Americans in the Columbus Metro Area, was prepared in partnership with US Together, the Columbus City Council, and the Franklin County Commissioners.

In addition to their financial contributions, like $729.5 million to Social Security and $204.3 million to Medicare in 2019, the report highlights how immigrants helped contribute to population growth in central Ohio. Between 2014 and 2019 the region’s population grew by 6.4 percent, with the immigrant population growing by 22.2 percent. In the City of Columbus, immigrants accounted for 29.5 percent of the population growth between 2014 and 2019.

This report also features profiles of four Columbus residents: Antoinette Wilson, Deba Uwadiae, Natasha Pongonis, and Tarek Albast.

Key findings include:

• Immigrants made up 8.7 percent of the area’s population but represented 10.7 percent of its employed labor force. 
• Immigrants accounted for 22.4 percent of the region’s science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) workers, nearly 21 percent of transportation and warehousing workers, 14.7 percent of manufacturing workers, and 12.8 percent of healthcare workers — all critical industries that have been essential during the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Immigrants strengthened the local job market by allowing companies to keep jobs on U.S. soil, helping preserve or create 8,500 local manufacturing jobs that would have otherwise vanished or moved elsewhere by 2019.

The report was produced are part of NAE’s and Welcoming America’s Gateways for Growth program, which includes tailored research on the local immigrant population and technical assistance in the creation of a multi-sector strategic immigrant integration plan.

Read the full press release here