Using U.S. Census data and information collected from extensive site visits, the authors find that immigrants, most of them from rural Mexico, are changing the face of rural California, increasing population, poverty, and public service demands. Upward mobility among these immigrants may be limited, and recent legislative changes are reducing public resources available to integrate newcomers just as their numbers are increasing. This book documents the problem and explores the policy challenges facing legislators -- how to curtail the transfer of rural poverty from Mexico to California and alleviate the persistence of poverty around the nation's farms. The authors cover all aspects of the problem -- from its history and development to the current policy dilemmas and challenges facing the nation's largest economy.