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Number of undocumented immigrants in Utah hits a 10-year low

The number of undocumented immigrants in Utah is decreasing and has hit its lowest point in a decade, according to a new study.

The Pew Research Center estimates that 95,000 immigrants without papers lived in Utah in 2016, a reduction from 100,000 in 2015 — and down from a peak of 110,000 in 2007.

However, the latest estimate — based on U.S. Census Bureau data — has a margin of error of 10,000 people, plus or minus. So Pew cautions that the latest apparent one-year drop could be a statistical illusion.

Luis Garza, executive director of Communidades Unidas [Communities United], a group that aids immigrants, agrees.