While nearly every region of the country is in an economic slump, Arizonans have yet one more reason to worry more than others - a significant portion of the workforce is fleeing the state.

Hispanics, including both legal and illegal immigrants, are leaving, apparently in reaction to the state’s new employer sanctions law.

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Last week, U.S. District Court Judge Neil V. Wake refused to put an injunction into effect that would stop enforcement of the law while it goes through the appeal process. Wake had earlier ruled the law to be legal but had asked law enforcement and the state’s county attorneys not to prosecute any cases until after March 1.

Indicators that Hispanics are leaving come from renting agencies and school districts.

Tucson Unified School District reports numbers of Hispanic students are falling faster than all other ethnicities combined.

Terry Feinberg, president of the Arizona Multihousing Alliance, a trade group for the apartment and rental housing industry told The New York Times, "A lot of people moving are citizens, or legal, but because someone in their family or social network is not, and they are having a hard time keeping or finding a job, they all move."

The loss of the immigrant workforce, both legal and illegal, will leave Arizona hurting, according to studies done by the University of Arizona and the Pew Foundation.

Estimates from the two studies found that immigrants make up about 14 percent of the state’s workforce, according to the UA study. The Pew study, based on 2006 statistics, says 11 percent of the state’s workforce is illegal.

In her UA study done last year, Judith Gans found that according to 2004 data, immeigrants generate about $2.4 billion in tax revenues, $860 million from naturalized citizens and $1.5 billion from non-citizens. The tax costs for things such as health care, education and law enforcement adds up to $1.4 billion, according to Gans, leaving a positive fiscal impact of about $1 billion annually.

It’s unclear where Hispanics may be headed - whether it’s to other states or returning to other countries.

At the State Capitol, lawmakers have introduced a bill to seek Congressional approval to create a state-run temporary program. Gov. Janet Napolitano is looking to the U.S. Department of Labor to rewrite regulations to streamline visas for workers in agriculture, which is particularly hard-hit by the lack of Hispanic workers.