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Missoula Panel Talks Economic Contributions Of Immigrants

Cindy Smith of Holiday Inn Missoula; Bob-Be Sparks of Holiday Inn Missoula; Helena Mayor Wilmot Collins; Missoula Mayor John Engen; Erica Bouris and Jen Barile, both of IRC, discuss immigration on July 11, 2018 in Missoula.
Maxine Speier
Cindy Smith of Holiday Inn Missoula; Bob-Be Sparks of Holiday Inn Missoula; Helena Mayor Wilmot Collins; Missoula Mayor John Engen; Erica Bouris and Jen Barile, both of IRC, discuss immigration on July 11, 2018 in Missoula.

Immigrant populations in Missoula are contributing hundreds of millions of dollars to the local economy each year. At a panel held in Missoula today the mayors of both Missoula and Helena talked about the economic benefits of welcoming refugees and immigrants.

In 2016 alone, immigrants contributed almost $220 million to the Missoula-area economy. That’saccording to a report from the New American Economy and the International Rescue Committee* released today.

Jen Barile is the resettlement director for Missoula’s International Rescue Committee (IRC).

“While immigrants make up a relatively small part of the population, they still have serious economic clout,” she said.

Barile and the IRC held a luncheon panel today to celebrate the release of the report and to highlight the economic contributions of immigrants in the five counties surrounding Missoula. Speakers on the panel included Missoula Mayor John Engen and Helena Mayor Wilmot Collins, himself a refugee from Liberia.

Engen, who was born and raised in Missoula, spoke of the value of welcoming diversity into the community.

“Immigration in Missoula is a good thing, and that’s based on not only what you’re seeing in this report, but what I see on the ground today and what I’ve seen in my experience as somebody who has lived in Missoula my entire life,” Engen said.

Collins shared his personal story of coming to Montana after fleeing from the civil war in his home country. He said that despite all the statistics and evidence to the contrary, there are plenty of stereotypes that immigrants take more than they give back.

“It is so wrong for people to continue the rhetoric that all we’re doing is just consuming and soaking up the resources of hard working Americans,” he said.

According to the New American Economy Report, Missoula’s immigrants do give back, contributing $19 million in federal taxes annually, and $7 million in state and local taxes. That still leaves almost $100 million in spending power — money that tends to pour right back into the local economy.

Another speaker on the panel was Kathy O’Masters, vice president of the Missoula Federal Credit Union, which has partnered with the IRC to give financial literacy classes to refugees.

O’Masters told the room of nearly 100 people that the money immigrants earn often pours straight back into the local economy.

“The number one question that we get from our refugee families is, how do I get a loan for a car, and how do I buy a house. You know, they all want the American dream,” she said.

Missoula was one of just 44 communities across the country selected for the New American Economy’s economic growth study.

You can read the entire report on immigrants and the Montana economy here.

*This story has been corrected. The original post mis-identified IRC as the International Refugee Center, it's correct name is International Rescue Committee. 

Maxine is the All Things Considered host and reporter for MTPR. She got her start at MTPR as a Montana News intern. She has also worked at KUNC in Northern Colorado and for Pacific Standard magazine as an editorial fellow covering wildfire and the environment.
Maxine graduated from the University of Montana with a master's degree in natural resource journalism and has a degree in creative writing from Vassar College. When she’s not behind the microphone you can find Maxine skiing, hiking with her not-so-well-behaved dogs, or lost in a book.
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