links between farm employment, immigration, and welfare use, not only within California's Central Valley but also along the state's central coast and southern regions. Using U.S. Census data and information collected from extensive community-level site visits, the authors find that immigration, largely from rural Mexico, is fueling unprecedented growth in population, poverty, and public service demands in California's agricultural heartland. Their analysis also indicates that upward mobility among these immigrant workers is limited and that recent legislatve changes are reducing public resources available to integrate newcomers just as the number of immigrants is increasing.

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