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San Francisco Chronicle
2 days ago
- Politics
- San Francisco Chronicle
These Bay Area communities are most vulnerable to Trump's immigration crackdowns
With the Trump administration clamping down on immigration, experts say some Bay Area immigrants may pursue one of the surest ways to protect their ability to remain in the country: becoming a citizen. That is, if they want to — or even can. Just 25% of Bay Area residents born in Guatemala, excluding children of American parents, are citizens. The same was true for 35% of Mexico-born residents. Meanwhile, nearly 60% of residents born in China and Nicaragua are naturalized. Still, overall more than half of the Bay Area's foreign-born population has already won citizenship, 2023 data from the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey shows, similar to the national figure. That means many of the region's immigrants are likely protected from deportation and scrutiny from border officials, said Bill Hing, a professor of law and migration studies at the University of San Francisco — though there have been some exceptions. As President Donald Trump continues to restrict immigration, more people who are eligible for naturalization will likely pursue that option, Hing said. It might not be the first time — naturalizations rose during Trump's first term. Naturalized citizens are less likely than lawfully present immigrants to report fearing detention or deportation, though about 1 in 4 say they are worried for themselves or a family member, according to a recent Kaiser Family Foundation poll. Hing expects a particularly large surge in people born in Mexico, Central America and South America to seek U.S. citizenship, hoping to avoid getting caught in Trump's mass deportation plans. Many immigrants from those countries who can pursue citizenship often don't, due to a variety of factors. Deportation fears could change that for some immigrants. 'The kind of enforcement that's going on right now is racially profiling those groups,' Hing said. The reasons some groups have relatively low naturalization rates vary, said Eric McGhee, a senior fellow at the Public Policy Institute of California. Many immigrants from Honduras, for example, arrived in the past two decades, meaning they've had less time to seek citizenship. Even among groups for whom naturalization is more common, such as China- and India-born immigrants, few of those who came to the U.S. in the past two decades are citizens. Indian immigrants in particular can face long wait times for permanent legal status — the longest of any nationality, according to some research. Naturalization applicants must have a green card for at least five years or be married to a U.S. citizen or permanent resident for at least three years, with exceptions for members of the military. Even with those hurdles cleared, there are often others, including language barriers. And undocumented immigrants are, of course, completely ineligible to become citizens. That likely explains why so few people among certain foreign-born groups, such as those born in Guatemala, are naturalized, McGhee said. While the Trump administration has targeted immigrants who are in the U.S. lawfully, such as by targeting international students, the crackdown will undoubtedly affect undocumented immigrants the most. 'There's a lot in flux and in play, but there's no question that the flexibility and range of options for the Trump administration are greater on the undocumented side,' McGhee said. There are additional reasons immigrants from some countries might be more likely to be citizens than others. Bay Area nonprofits previously encouraged Chinese-born residents to become citizens so they could gain the right to vote and become a political force, Hing said. The effort, made possible by the repeal of the Chinese Exclusion Acts in 1943, was a success. More than 90% of Bay Area Chinese-born residents who immigrated to the U.S. from 1970 to 1990 are citizens. Whether immigrants seek to become citizens also depends on the situation in their home country, Hing said. For example, Taiwan's political upheaval in the 20th century, and now its tensions with China, may give immigrants born there more of an incentive to seek naturalization. But those factors may matter less for immigrants from wealthy, stable countries like Japan, Singapore and Australia, especially for those who plan to travel often (or ultimately return) to their birth country. But anti-immigrant sentiment can also lead to an increase in naturalization, as Hing predicts will happen again. After California Proposition 187 was passed in 1994, cutting undocumented immigrants' access to social services, the state saw a surge in naturalization applications.
Forbes
3 days ago
- Business
- Forbes
The Richest Places In Virginia As Revealed By Latest Census Data
Modern townhomes in the historic city of Alexandria and the waterfront property along the Potomac ... More River in northern Virginia. The greater Washington, D.C. area, especially along the Potomac, is home to many of the wealthiest cities in Virginia. In recent studies, U.S. states have been analyzed in order to identify the richest cities there. Several of these studies examined states in the U.S. South, such as the wealthiest cities in North Carolina, South Carolina, Kentucky, Georgia, and many others in the region. Here, it is Virginia's turn to receive this analysis. Read on and find out what the richest city in Virginia is, as well as the top 20 wealthiest places in the state. To define the 'richest city in Virginia,' data was sourced from the Census Bureau's 2023 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (which is the latest data available), including median household income, mean household income, median home value, and median property taxes paid, and then analyzed and scored each one of these factors, assembling a list of the top 20 richest cities in Virginia. In order to fully comprehend the figures, there are some important things to note about Census data. The Census Bureau measures median household incomes up to $250,000, with households earning more being denoted as '$250,000+'. The Census does this also with median home value, which goes up to $2 million, with everything above that being expressed as '$2,000,000+'. Lastly, the same limits apply to measuring median property taxes paid, which go up to $10,000 and any amount above that is denoted as '$10,000+'. This makes the mean household income particularly useful in this analysis of the wealthiest cities in Virginia. Unlike median household income, the Census Bureau provides mean (or average) household income with exact values for every city in Virginia. All four of these metrics were scored, summed up, and then ranked by the cities' combined scores. Another aspect of the Census to point out, and is particularly relevant to Virginia, is the Census-designated place — CDP. The Census, more or less, treats CDPs as cities — their terminology is 'place' — and this list will treat these places the same way. So, if you see a place on this list that you don't consider or isn't considered a city, it's because of the Census Bureau's geographical designation of them as 'places.' Below you'll find a table detailing the top 20 richest cities in Virginia and their respective dollar figures for each metric: The No. 1 richest city in Virginia is probably not that well-known compared to the wealthy cities in the Washington, D.C. area. Keswick is a small town east of Charlottesville, where the University of Virginia is located. Part of the reason Keswick may not be well-known is it only first appears as a census-designated place in the 2020 U.S. Census. This town is mainly residential, with a mixture of large farms, estates, middle-income, and low-income housing. Over the years, it has gained wealthy residents. The median household income in Keswick is over $250,000. Its average household income is the highest in the state, at $538,732. The median home value is almost $1.117 million. Fortunately for residents here, the median property taxes paid are comparatively low, at $4,559 per year. The second richest city in Virginia is Great Falls, which falls within the wealthy radius of Washington, D.C. Great Falls is northwest of D.C. and northwest of Dulles International Airport, with its northern border formed by the Potomac River. Great Falls is a sizable town, with nearly 5,000 households. Like the No. 1 richest city, the median household income exceeds $250,000, while the mean household income is just a tad under $400,000. The median home value is roughly $1.342 million, while Zillow's figure is over $1.7 million. Unsurprisingly, the median property taxes paid per household is over $10,000. The No. 3 richest city in Virginia is in between Great Falls and D.C. — McLean. This is a fairly large city, with 17,133 households, making it three times bigger than Great Falls. Like Great Falls, it lies along the Potomac River. Its income figures are very similar to those of Great Falls. The median household income is over $250,000. The average household income is $364,591, which is a little over $30,000 less than in Great Falls. The median home value, according to the Census Bureau, is about $1.305 million; according to Zillow, it's almost $1.460 million. Connected to the high home values is the high property taxes. The median paid is over $10,000 per household. The majority of Virginia's wealthiest cities can be found in the Washington, D.C. metro area. This has been the case for a long time. What has changed is that this wealthy radius has pushed farther out. Towns that are up to an hour outside D.C. now fall into this wealthy circle. Plus, there are towns in more rural areas of Virginia that have witnessed an injection of wealth as people have looked for new markets to plant themselves.
Forbes
3 days ago
- Business
- Forbes
The Richest Places In Nevada, Latest Census Data Shows
A series of recent studies analyzed and identified the richest cities in a number of states that lie in the geographic Mountain division, such as Colorado, Utah, Idaho, and Wyoming. For this article, the analysis will be for Nevada's richest cities. This study analyzed 134 cities in Nevada with complete data from the Census Bureau, in terms of their median household income, mean (average) household income, median home value, and median property taxes paid per year, to come up with a list of the 15 richest places in the state. Read on to find out what the richest city in Nevada is, plus the top 15 wealthiest cities in the state overall. In order to compile this list of the richest cities in Nevada, we sourced key financial data from the Census Bureau's 2023 American Community Survey. Harnessing these datasets, we put together a scoring system based on four factors to help identify the wealthiest cities in Nevada: The Census Bureau does some interesting things with its data. For certain factors, the Census numbers have upper limits, so there's no exact value for certain factors. When it comes to median household income, the Census Bureau has an upper limit of '$250,000+'. For median home value, the upper limit is '$2,000,000+'. For median property taxes paid, the upper limit is '$10,000+'. Thus, for these reasons, the mean household income (which is the same as average household income) dataset is crucial because the Census Bureau has exact figures for it. All four of these metrics were scored, added up, and then ranked by the cities' combined scores. Census data also categorizes geographies in a particular way that the average person might not conceive of. And it is particularly relevant to Nevada. The Census has a geographic unit called census-designated places, CDPs, which it essentially treats as what people would think of as cities. So, if you see places here listed as cities, it's because they are CDPs and the Census Bureau more or less treats them as cities or towns. You'll find a table detailing the top 15 richest cities in Nevada and their respective dollar figures for each metric, below: The No. 1 richest city in Nevada in this ranking is Crystal Bay, a very small town of only 80 households, on the northern shore of Lake Tahoe. It borders the state line with California. It sits on Crystal Bay across from Incline Village, another city on this list of wealthiest places in Nevada. The median household income in Crystal Bay is over $250,000. The average household income is an incredible $673,626. Not surprisingly, its median home value is in excess of $2 million, which is the upper limit the Census Bureau tracks. And the median property taxes paid by households is over $10,000 a year. The second wealthiest place in Nevada is another Lake Tahoe town, Glenbrook. This town is on the east coast of Lake Tahoe, south-southeast of Crystal Bay. The median household income is $223,942, while the average household income is north of $400,000. Like Crystal Bay, the median home value here is over $2 million. The median property taxes paid per household is over $10,000. Nearly 57% of households earn $200,000 or more a year. The No. 3 richest city in Nevada is Round Hill Village, another town along Lake Tahoe. This place is bigger than the No. 1 and No. 2 cities, being home to 380 households. This town is down in the southeast corner of Lake Tahoe, right near the California border and the aptly named city of Stateline. The median household income is $189,038, while the average household income is $279,816. The median home value here is almost $1.216 million and individual listings can be well over this figure. The median property taxes paid, however, aren't as bad as in the No. 1 and No. 2 cities, at $3,868 per year. The vast majority of the top 15 richest cities in Nevada are located in the vicinity of Lake Tahoe, with one or two in the Las Vegas metro area. You can see in the income figures, however, the imbalance in wealth generated by resort towns in the Take Tahoe area. The home values, even more so, convey the wealth disparity, with many places having median home values well beyond what the typical household income can sustain.
Newsweek
5 days ago
- Business
- Newsweek
DOGE Cuts to Cause 2 Million Extra Visits to Social Security Offices: Study
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. Staffing cuts and office closures at the Social Security Administration (SSA), driven by Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), are estimated to force seniors to make nearly 2 million additional annual trips for necessary in-person assistance, according to a new study. Newsweek reached out to the SSA for comment. Why It Matters Social Security provides vital support to nearly 69 million Americans each month, including retired workers and disabled individuals. Record backlogs and rising demand from an aging population, in addition to reduced staffing and cuts to long-held phone services, could hit rural seniors and disabled Americans the hardest—forcing beneficiaries, some with mobility issues or lack of technology access, into long lines at SSA offices or risking benefit interruptions. What to Know Researchers at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP), in new data released Tuesday, say DOGE cuts plus revised SSA protocols are estimated to require people to make over 1.93 million additional trips annually to understaffed field offices each year—equating to more than 1 million wasted hours on unnecessary travel every year. Data was accumulated by analyzing SSA field office maps, the OpenTimes travel times database, and the geographic distribution of seniors (people aged 65 and over) from the Census Bureau's 2023 American Community Survey. "Our estimates are very conservative because when they're talking about the time, it's just the time literally to travel from one point to another and back," Devin O'Connor, a CBPP senior fellow and study co-author, told Newsweek. "It doesn't take into account traffic, time of day, other things that come into effect. "But also, it doesn't take into account how long you might spend waiting in a field office or how hard it is to get an appointment to go to a field office in the first place." The study estimates that nationally, assuming no traffic, half of all seniors must drive at least 33 minutes for a field office visit while nearly a quarter of seniors (roughly 13.5 million) live more than an hour's drive roundtrip from their nearest field office. In 31 states, including Oregon and Missouri, more than 25 percent of seniors must travel over an hour to access their nearest office. In some states, like Arkansas and Wyoming, more than 40 percent of seniors must make long treks for services. Initially, on April 14 and due to SSA changes, phone service was meant to no longer be an option for retirees and survivors applying for benefits, or for beneficiaries making direct deposit changes. In-office appearances were required. The SSA quickly reversed its own policy on telephone applications, saying most applicants could still apply by phone. But as of last month, beneficiaries are no longer able to make direct deposit changes solely by phone and transactions require either a multifactor, multistep online identity authentication, or an in-person visit. Kathleen Romig, director of Social Security and disability policy at CBPP, told Newsweek that beneficiaries for years were able to update their banking information over the phone. Now, they have to log into an online portal and get a custom PIN number, or go into a field office in person to authenticate their identities. "First, you have to call wait on the phone. Then, you have to wait to get an appointment, and most people aren't able to get an appointment within a month's time, and then you have to drive into the field office," Romig said. "Those burdens accumulate on seniors and people with disabilities." Travel becomes more difficult for those who live in rural areas or have transportation or mobility difficulties. It's estimated that over 6 million seniors in the U.S. don't drive, and another 8 million report a medical condition or disability that makes travel difficult. Now-deleted figures released by SSA in April showed that nearly 2,000 SSA field office staffers took a voluntary separation incentive payment (VSIP, or buyout). That impacted dozens of field offices where greater than 25 of the workforce accepted buyouts, though offices vary in size and personnel. "Almost 60 percent, six out of 10 people, are waiting more than four weeks to get into a field office, so there's no reason to think that a direct deposit change is going to be prioritized over a benefit claim," O'Connor said. "So, people who are no longer able to do this over the phone are going to be kept waiting and then have to make that travel." In March, Senate Democrats warned that SSA would close 47 field offices and six of its 10 regional offices, eliminating up to 12 percent of its total staff. This downsizing, according to lawmakers, was projected to mean an extra 75,000 to 85,000 Americans will have to visit local offices in person every week. Additional foot traffic may overwhelm the remaining offices, exacerbating case backlogs, increasing wait times, and delay benefit payments, according to the Wall Street Journal and employee unions. "I was thinking about as like my 70-year-old mom, but also my 90-year-old great aunt—those are two different levels of Internet fluency and they need to be able to serve both populations," O'Connor said. "By moving to this kind of process, there's just going to be a lot of people who are not able to complete this process and they are creating this burden to attack what to date is a very, very small amount of fraud and the primary source originating fraud risk. "It just feels like the cost-benefit analysis has not occurred. The fraud reductions burden trade-off has not been meaningfully engaged with." What People Are Saying Martin O'Malley, former Social Security Commissioner said: "Ultimately, you're going to see the system collapse and an interruption of benefits. I believe you will see that within the next 30 to 90 days." (Senate Democrats, March 25, 2025). Rich Couture, spokesperson for the American Federation of Government Employees' Social Security Administration general committee said: "What's being served by that by a loss of 7,000 jobs? How does any of that supposedly makes this operation more efficient? How does it improve service? How does it improve productivity? Our position is that losing 7,000 people doesn't do any of those things." Anonymous SSA employee and military veteran told The Guardian: "They have these 'concepts of plans' that they're hoping are sticking but in reality, are really hurting American people." What Happens Next The Social Security Administration is moving forward with office closures and service changes, with unions, advocates and Congress watching closely. Official timelines for further closures and restructuring remain pending.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Think You're Middle Class? You Might Not Be — Surprisingly Most People Are Really Off On What It Takes To Fall Into This Category
Middle class. It sounds safe. Sensible. Maybe even a little smug — like a reliable sedan with a good credit score. For many Americans, it's the label that feels right: not too rich, not too poor. But according to the latest numbers, there's a good chance that what you think is middle class... isn't. A Pew Research Center analysis, using data from the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey, found that only about 51% of Americans actually fall into the middle-income tier. That means nearly half the country is either above or below the range — and most don't even realize it. Don't Miss: Hasbro, MGM, and Skechers trust this AI marketing firm — Deloitte's fastest-growing software company partners with Amazon, Walmart & Target – Pew defines the middle class as households earning between two-thirds and double the national median income. For a three-person household, that's anywhere from $56,600 to $169,800, adjusted for cost of living in metro areas. That range might sound wide — because it is. But even within it, the middle class is shrinking in influence. Middle-income households now account for just 43% of total U.S. household income, down from 62% in 1970. Meanwhile, upper-income households have grown their share from 29% to 48%. What's more telling is who falls outside the middle. Pew's breakdown shows that Black, Hispanic, Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander, and American Indian/Alaska Native populations are disproportionately represented in the lower-income tier. For example, 47% of American Indian or Alaska Native households are classified as lower income, compared to just 24% of white households. Trending: Maker of the $60,000 foldable home has 3 factory buildings, 600+ houses built, and big plans to solve housing — Net worth paints an even starker picture. According to the Federal Reserve, middle-income households have a median net worth of $356,300 — a noticeable jump from the $204,100 figure previously cited by Pew, which uses a different methodology. For comparison: Lower-income households: $93,300 Upper-income households: $1,036,200 If that sounds dated, it's not by accident. Most federal surveys — including the Fed's Survey of Consumer Finances — are conducted on a three-year cycle. The data being referenced here is the most recent available, with the next major update expected in yes — you might earn a "middle class" income but still be way off when it comes to wealth. Or you might fall short on income but have accumulated assets that bump you up. If you're trying to figure out where you land, this might be a good time to review more than just your paycheck. Take stock of your full financial picture — savings, debts, home equity, retirement accounts. You may want to consult a financial advisor to see where you really stand, and whether you're building toward the class you think you're in. Because these days, just feeling middle class doesn't mean you are. And assuming you're on track could mean you're ignoring cracks in the foundation. Read Next: Invest where it hurts — and help millions heal:. 'Scrolling To UBI' — Deloitte's #1 fastest-growing software company allows users to earn money on their phones. Image: Shutterstock UNLOCKED: 5 NEW TRADES EVERY WEEK. Click now to get top trade ideas daily, plus unlimited access to cutting-edge tools and strategies to gain an edge in the markets. Get the latest stock analysis from Benzinga? APPLE (AAPL): Free Stock Analysis Report TESLA (TSLA): Free Stock Analysis Report This article Think You're Middle Class? You Might Not Be — Surprisingly Most People Are Really Off On What It Takes To Fall Into This Category originally appeared on © 2025 Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
