Letter to Cochran, Mikulski, Rogers, and Lowey - Call for Increased Funding for Refugee Screening and Resettlement
Letter
Dear Chairman Cochran, Vice Chairwoman Mikulski, Chairman Rogers and Ranking Member Lowey,
We have all seen and heard about the horrors Syrians have faced due to civil war and terrorism. Millions have fled their homeland in the hopes of seeking safety. While the United States has a thorough system in place for screening at-risk refugees, it is lengthy and not as efficient as it could be for low-risk refugees. Most Syrians first register with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, which can take anywhere from a few weeks to more than a year before a very select few are referred to the United States for our own stringent checks, which on average, take between 18-24 months. We should improve security standards to ensure that terrorists don't enter the United States; however, we also can expedite the process for low risk populations at the same time.
There are three main agencies that are tasked with refugee processing and resettlement which include the Department of State's Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration (PRM), the Department of Health and Human Services' Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR), and the Department of Homeland Security's U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). PRM runs the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program, which includes the Resettlement Support Centers, and the Reception and Placement Program. ORR provides social services that help refugees become self-sufficient after arrival while also offering guidance and medical assistance. USCIS makes the final determination about whether or not each refugee is admissible to the U.S.
As you finalize the Fiscal Year 2016 Omnibus Appropriations bill, we encourage you to significantly increase funding for these critical programs to allow for more resources to be dedicated to more efficiently process refugee applications. By allocating additional resources effectively, we can both improve and speed up the refugee screening process which is so important to our national security. As you know, we can be both humanitarian and cautious and do not need to sacrifice one for the sake of the other.
We appreciate your attention to this lifesaving matter.
Sincerely,
Rep. John K. Delaney
Rep. Pete Aguilar
Rep. Ami Bera
Rep. Julia Brownley
Rep. Cheri Bustos
Rep. John Carney
Rep. Yvette D. Clarke
Rep. Gerald E. Connolly
Rep. Jim Cooper
Rep. Jim Costa
Rep. Joe Courtney
Rep. Debbie Dingell
Rep. Gene Green
Rep. Janice Hahn
Rep. Ron Kind
Rep. Ann McLane Kuster
Rep. Ted W. Lieu
Rep. James P. McGovern
Rep. Patrick Murphy
Rep. Richard Nolan
Rep. Eleanor Holmes Norton
Rep. Scott Peters
Rep. Chellie Pingree
Rep. Jared Polis
Rep. Mike Quigley
Rep. Charles B. Rangel
Rep. Kathleen Rice
Rep. Raul Ruiz
Rep. Kyrsten Sinema
Rep. Albio Sires
Rep. Adam Smith
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