S. 3535 — GRACE Act

This section revises refugee admissions under Section 207 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1157), which authorizes the President to set an annual ceiling after consultation based on humanitarian concerns or the national interest (with no prior statutory minimum). It establishes a minimum of 125,000 refugee admissions per fiscal year (not fewer than this amount, from President's full discretion), plus an additional number admitted through community or private sponsorship providing initial reception and placement services; sets a default ceiling of 125,000 if the President issues no determination before the fiscal year begins; and requires federal officers responsible for admissions or resettlement to treat the ceiling (or default) and subsection (b) emergency determinations as numerical goals. The section further requires the President, in setting the ceiling, to consider the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees' (UNHCR) most recent projected global resettlement needs and to determine regional allocations that reflect UNHCR projections (for the next calendar year) or include a State Department assessment of humanitarian/national interest priorities, with an unallocated reserve usable by the Secretary of State after Judiciary Committee notice. It also adds quarterly reporting requirements, including (1) public reports to the Senate and House Judiciary Committees (and a public website) on quarterly/cumulative admissions, percentages of authorized totals, remaining admissions needed, and regional percentages; and (2) classified reports to the Committees on processing metrics such as enhanced security clearances (by nationality), approvals, admissions, circuit ride deployments (e.g., officer percentages, interviews per ride/location, durations, video teleconferencing), and planned rides.