“A bill to establish a community-based refugee reception program to provide initial refugee resettlement services, and for other purposes.”
No CRS summary available for this bill.
This section expresses the sense of Congress that community-based refugee reception complements—but does not replace—traditional resettlement services provided through the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP); such participation fosters U.S. citizen engagement and self-sufficiency among refugees; and the Department of State should expand citizen involvement in resettlement. It further states that USRAP demonstrates U.S. leadership amid the global refugee crisis (36.8 million refugees); resettled refugees contributed a $123.8 billion net economic benefit from 2005 to 2019 (less than 1% of global refugees are resettled in a third country); U.S. investments in refugees stabilize security and encourage other nations; and refugee processing must immediately resume for all nationalities.
This section defines, for purposes of the Act, (1) "Secretary" as the Secretary of State; (2) "reception and placement services" as the Department of State's initial reception and placement program that provides resettlement assistance to refugees arriving in the United States, including housing, furnishings, clothing, food, assistance with medical, employment, educational, and social services, and cultural and social orientation; and (3) "United States Refugee Admissions Program" as the program to resettle refugees pursuant to INA sections 101(a)(42), 207, and 412 (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(42), 1157, 1522).
This section designates aliens referred by eligible community sponsorship groups (per new INA §415) as refugees of special humanitarian concern eligible for processing and admission under the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP) pursuant to INA §207 (8 U.S.C. 1157), subject to standard refugee admissibility requirements. It directs the Secretary to establish USRAP processing procedures for such referrals within 90 days of enactment and exempts refugees admitted under this section from numerical limitations in INA §§202, 203, 204, and 207 (8 U.S.C. 1152, 1153, 1154, 1157). (Thus, such admissions do not count against the annual refugee ceiling, per-country limits, or family-sponsored/employment-based immigrant visa caps.) It specifies that this provision does not authorize replacement of federally funded reception and placement services or restrict other refugee admission authorities.
This section establishes the Community-based Refugee Reception Program within the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program (which resettles refugees admitted under INA §207). Not later than 90 days after enactment, the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Secretaries of Homeland Security and Health and Human Services, must implement the program using community sponsorship groups, private sponsorship, and partnerships with resettlement agencies to provide refugees (and their immediate relatives or beneficiaries) with initial reception and placement services for at least 90 days, in lieu of services typically provided by domestic resettlement agencies and affiliates. Refugees are eligible if referred by a community sponsorship group under INA §§101(a)(42), 207, or 412 and the Secretary determines placement facilitates self-sufficiency based on the refugee's needs (including disabilities); an exception allows placement of other referred refugees with such groups under similar considerations. Community sponsorship groups are eligible to participate if they include at least three U.S. citizens or lawful permanent residents in the resettlement area, raise sufficient funds (as determined by the Secretary of State) for initial sponsorship costs, complete pre-arrival training, and submit biographic information (with a training exception for groups providing pre-admission consent). The Secretary may award grants, contracts, and cooperative agreements to geographically diverse organizations (e.g., those experienced in community sponsorship, veteran service organizations, faith-based groups, and private sponsor organizations) to train and support such groups, including development of mandatory pre-application training on sponsor responsibilities, best practices for self-sufficiency, refugee rights, and public benefits eligibility. (Thus, refugees retain access to all public benefits beyond reception and placement services.)