Texas Withdraws From National Refugee Resettlement Program [UPDATED]

AUSTIN, TX — Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Friday made good on his earlier threat to pull out of the U.S. Refugee Resettlement Program, insisting federal officials have not made assurances those seeking refuge in the U.S. don't pose a danger to the state's security.

“Texas has repeatedly requested that the director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the director of National Intelligence provide assurances that refugees resettled in Texas will not pose a security threat, and that the number of refugees resettled in Texas would not exceed the state’s original allocation in fiscal year 2016, both of which have been denied by the federal government,” Abbott said in a prepared statement Friday.

“As a result, Texas will withdraw from the refugee resettlement program,” Abbott said. “As governor, I will continue to prioritize the safety of all Texans and urge the federal government to overhaul this severely broken system.”

The state's withdrawal from the refugee resettlement program takes effect Jan. 31, 2017, Abbott said. The four-month timeline is predicated by a notice requirement, he noted.

Bryan Black, a spokesman for the Texas Health and Human Services Commission, which oversees the state's refugee resettlement program, reiterated Abbott's stance. Refugees — some of them escaping war and oppression in Syria — will no longer be welcome in Texas after the aforementioned date, with aid extended for their resettlement ending as a result.

“Since we have not received federal approval of our plan, we are moving forward with our transition out of the Refugee Resettlement Program,” Black said. “After today, the current plan will no longer be in effect, and we will begin exiting the program, with benefits and services ending on Jan. 31, 2017.”

In previous emails to Patch in response to questions, Office of Refugee Resettlement officials suggested a withdrawal from the program by Texas wouldn't prevent refugees' resettlement in Texas. Those assisting refugees are able to channel federal funds through nonprofit groups assisting the influx rather than going directly through the state.

ORR officials also provided Patch with a five-page letter sent to Abbott late last year in response to his concerns. The letter outlined a series of security measures undertaken to properly vet all incoming refugees.

Meanwhile, a group of rabbis from throughout Texas urging the governor to welcome refugees into the fold has grown to 70 Jewish religious leaders. The letter provided to Patch was originally signed by 40 rabbis, urging Texas to reconsider its stance while utilizing historical context as it relates to past refugee conflicts.

As an example of past gestures welcoming the displaced, the rabbis pointed to a Texas example: The Galveston Movement that diverted Jews fleeing pogroms of Russian and eastern Europe into communities throughout the U.S. in the early part of the 20th century. Historians deem that event as "one of the greatest philanthropic events of the century."

In presenting the letter from Texas rabbis urging empathy for refugees, Mark Hetfield, president and CEO of HIAS, contrasted the state's current stance with its past altruistic tactics. HIAS describes itself as "... a global Jewish nonprofit that protects refugees — including women and children, and ethnic, religious, and sexual minorities — whose lives are in danger for being who they are," according to its website.

“Texas is a big state with a big heart and a history of welcoming refugees,” said Hetfield. “For HIAS, this history goes back to the late 1800s and the Galveston Movement, when Texas welcomed Jews who fled ethnic cleansing in czarist Russia."

To see the letter that has now been signed by 70 rabbis throughout Texas, click here.

On the same day of Abbott's announcement, a video emerged of a Syrian rescue worker saving a child from rubble in the war-torn nation, showing an otherwise hardened medical professional reduced to tears in transporting the young victim to safety.

The Syrian refugee crisis is the most urgent on the global stage, given an ongoing civil war that has grown in intensity in recent months. An estimated 11 million Syrians have fled their homes since the outbreak of civil war in March 2011, Syrian officials said. After six years of war, some 13.5 million of the displaced are in need of humanitarian assistance within the country.

From Sept. 21:

AUSTIN, TX — Gov. Greg Abbott on Wednesday sent notice of the state's intention to withdraw from the federal refugee resettlement program should federal officials not provide him with added assurance refugees don't pose a threat to Texas.

"The State of Texas today sent a letter to the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) giving official notice of its intention to withdraw from the federal refugee resettlement program should ORR not unconditionally approve Texas’ state plan by Sept. 30th," his office said in an advisory issued Wednesday. "Today’s letter comes after ORR’s unwillingness to approve Texas’ updated state refugee plan, which would require national security officials to ensure that refugees do not pose a security threat to Texas."

Amid a backdrop of heightened awareness of immigration in a political climate that has vaulted the topic as a key, and polarizing, discussion point, the Texas governor now effectively enters the fray in earnest. Immigrant advocates have often clashed with Abbott on his hard stance on immigrants, but the officials notice represents his most strident opposition to resettlement.

As required by ORR, his letter states, Texas’ withdrawal from the refugee resettlement program will be effective 120 days after the September 30th deadline, on January 31st, 2017.

“The federal government’s refugee settlement program is riddled with serious problems that pose a threat to our nation," he wrote. "The Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Director of National Intelligence have repeatedly declared their inability to fully screen refugees from terrorist-based nations. Even with the inability to properly vet refugees from Syria and countries known to be supporters or propagators of terrorism, President Obama is now ineptly proposing a dramatic increase in the number of refugees to be resettled in the U.S."

Noting the need for empathy on refugees' plight, Abbott nonetheless stressed the need for security measures to safeguard the state from bad actors.

"Empathy must be balanced with security," he wrote. "Texas has done more than its fair share in aiding refugees, accepting more refugees than any other state between October 2015 and March 2016. While many refugees pose no danger, some pose grave danger, like the Iraqi refugee with ties to ISIS who was arrested earlier this year after he plotted to set off bombs at two malls in Houston."

Despite repeated advisories issued by the federal government highlighting the stringent applications process refugees must undergo -- a battery of background checks that can often take two years before admission into the U.S. -- Abbott reiterated his claims the checks process is flawed.

"Despite multiple requests by the State of Texas, the federal government lacks the capability or the will to distinguish the dangerous from the harmless, and Texas will not be an accomplice to such dereliction of duty to the American people," he wrote. "Therefore, Texas will withdraw from the refugee resettlement program. I strongly urge the federal government to completely overhaul a broken and flawed refugee program that increasingly risks American lives.”

A copy of the letter from Texas’ State Refugee Coordinator can be found here.

Patch reached out to the ORR for a reaction to Abbott's move. In response, they provided a five-page letter sent to Abbott last November addressing his concerns, detailing the stringent process involved in vetting would-be refugees into the U.S.

"In response to ongoing discussions by governors across the country, regarding our refugee resettlement program, we would like to describe for you in detail the rigorous security vetting process refugee applications undergo, particularly as it pertains to the population of refugees fleeing from the conflict in Syria."

What followed was an exhaustively detailed description from ORR about the process potential refugees undergo before being admitted to the U.S.

"In short, the security vetting for this population -- the most vulnerable of individuals -- is extraordinarily throughout and comprehensive," ORR officials wrote Abbott. "It is the most robust screening process for any category of individuals seeking admission into the United States.

They described a "multi-layered and intensive" process that involves multiple law enforcement, national security and intelligence agencies throughout the federal government. Moreover, additional precautions have been added with regard to Syrian refugees, ORR officials added.

Those precautions come at a time when the world is experiencing an unprecedented flow of more than 4 million refugees from Syria, primarily in Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraw, Egypt, Europe and beyond, ORR officials said. They provided a description of the vetting process in their multi-page letter to Abbott:

• "First, many candidates for refugee resettlement in the United States are interviewed by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to determine whether they meet the definition of a refugee -- i.e. persons who have been persecuted, or have a well-founded fear of persecution, based on political opinion, social group, race, religion or nationality."
• "Second a refugee applicant is referred by the UNHCR to the United States along with a package of information. At this point, the State Department takes over the process. Resettlement support centers, operated by faith-based and international organizations contracting with the State Department, first interview the applicant to confirm information about the case and collect any identification documents and aliases used by the refugee applicants and initiate security checks, which are exclusively conducted by the U.S. Government."
• "Third, refugee applicants screened by the Department of State are then referred to the United States Citizen and Immigration Services (USCIS) at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), where USCIS oversees rigorous refugee status interviews and additional security vetting. Security checks are an integrap part of this process. USCIS collects biometric information, consisting of fingerprints, for each refugee applicant, ages 14 to 79."
• "Fourth, before an approved refugee arrives in the United States, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CPB) at DHS receives a manifest of all refugees who have prior approval to travel to the United States. CBP receives this manifest eight days before a refugee's scheduled travel. The agency performs initial vetting before their arrival at a port of entry, then conducts additiaonsl background checks of these subjects upon arrival."
• "Fifth, and finally, the Department of State and the Department of Health and Human Services work together to determine an appropriate resettlement site in the United States, transport the refugee, and provide services to help the refugee make the transition to self-sufficiency and become contributing members of the community."

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