According to new data provided by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), there are now less illegal immigrants living in the U.S. than there were two years ago. In the estimates provided by DHS, roughly 10.8 million illegal immigrants lived in the U.S. in January of this year; in 2007, that number was just about 12 million.

While there are doubts about the accuracy of the data provided by DHS, most experts agree that the number of illegal immigrants has indeed dropped. Some believe this is due to less undocumented persons entering the U.S.; others contest that the reason for this drop is because more illegal immigrants are leaving the U.S. Two causes for this decrease in numbers were cited: first, the current economic has led to less economic opportunity in this country for illegal immigrants, and second, an increase in enforcement has limited the amount of undocumented persons entering and remaining in the U.S.