Welcome to the National Refugee Advocacy Webinar

Friday, February 6, 2015

rcusa.org

Call and Webinar will begin at 12:00 p.m. EST

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Agenda12:00 Welcome

12:05 Overview of In-Country Processing for Central American Minors

12:25 Overview of 114th Congress, Legislative Update, and Brief Summary of President’s Budget Request

12:40 Questions

12:50 Call to Action and Closing

In-Country Processing for Central American Minors

Background– From 2004 to 2011, the number of arriving unaccompanied children

to the US averaged between 7,000 and 8,000 annually.

– In FY 2012, the number of unaccompanied children taken into US custody jumped to over 13,000 children.

– In FY 2013, the number reached over 24,000 and in FY 2014 nearly 70,000 children arrived at the U.S.-Mexico border.

– Asylum requests by Guatemalans, Hondurans, and Salvadorans seeking refuge in the neighboring countries of Mexico, Panama, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Belize have increased by 712% since 2009.

– Even more people are fleeing to safe havens within their own countries.

In-Country Processing for Central American Minors

Overview– In November, the Obama Administration announced a family

reunification program that aims to deter children from El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras from undertaking a risky journey in an attempt to reunify with a parent residing in the U.S.

– The in-country refugee/parole program will be facilitated by the U.S. Department of State and Department of Homeland Security (DHS)

– Children who are found ineligible for refugee admission but still at risk of harm may be considered for parole on a case-by-case basis.

In-Country Processing for Central American Minors

Overview– Applications are initiated in the U.S. by a “qualifying parent” who must

be at last 18 years old and must have legal status (including TPS, LPR, parolee, DACA, DED, or withholding of removal).

– Qualifying parent must complete the DS-7699 form (Affidavit of Relationship (AOR) for Minors Who Are Nationals of El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras) with the help of a designated refugee resettlement agency.

– The refugee resettlement process is estimated to take 9-12 months, but given that this is a newly implemented program, processing times are estimates.

– Minors who receive refugee status through this program are eligible for benefits through the Reception and Placement program upon arrival, as well as other benefits through ORR.

In-Country Processing for Central American Minors

Overview– Just like other refugees, individuals admitted to the U.S. under this

program must meet the refugee definition by demonstrating that he/she was persecuted or fears persecution due to race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or membership in a particular social group.

– Certain individuals who do not receive refugee status may be given the option of parole, which is a mechanism to allow someone who does not qualify as a refugee but is otherwise inadmissible to come to the U.S. for urgent humanitarian reasons or significant public benefit.

– Individuals granted refugee status or offered parole will be required to undergo medical examinations as well as DNA and security checks, and those offered parole will be responsible for their own travel to the U.S.

• UNHCR: Children on the Run: Unaccompanied Children Leaving Central America and Mexico and the Need for International Protection: www.unhcrwashington.org/children/reports

• USCCB Mission to Central America: Flight of the Unaccompanied Immigrant Children to the United States: www.usccb.org/about/migration-policy/upload/Mission-To-Central-America-FINAL-2.pdf

• KIND (Kids in Need of Defense) and Center for Gender & Refugee Studies: A Treacherous Journey: Child Migrants Navigating the U.S. Immigration System: www.supportkind.org/en/about-us/resources

• Women’s Refugee Commission: Forced From Home, The Lost Boys and Girls of Central America: http://womensrefugeecommission.org/programs/migrant-rights/unaccompanied-children

Learn More about Central American Migration (CAM)

Overview of 114th Congress

Appropriations• Senate Appropriations Committee – Sen. Thad Cochran (R-MS), Chair;

Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-MD), Ranking Member– Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations, and Related

Programs (SFOPs) – Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Chair; Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Ranking Member

– Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies (LHHS) – Sen. Roy Blunt (R-MO), Chair; Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA), Ranking Member

• House Appropriations Committee – Rep. Harold Rogers (R-KY-5), Chair; Rep. Nita Lowey (D-NY-17), Ranking Member– Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations, and Related

Programs (SFOPs) – Rep. Kay Granger (R-TX-12), Chair; Rep. Nita Lowey (D-NY-17), Ranking Member

– Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies (LHHS) – Rep. Tom Cole (R-OK-4), Chair; Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT-3), Ranking Member

Overview of 114th Congress

Judiciary• Senate Judiciary Committee – Sen. Charles Grassley (R-IA), Chair;

Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Ranking Member– Subcommittee on Immigration and the National Interest – Sen.

Jeff Sessions (R-AL), Chair; Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY), Ranking Member

• House Judiciary Committee – Rep. Robert Goodlatte (R-VA-6), Chair; Rep. John Conyers (D-MI-13), Ranking Member– Subcommittee on Immigration and Border Security – Rep. Trey

Gowdy (R-SC-4), Chair; Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA-19), Ranking Member

Overview of 114th Congress

• Senate Foreign Relations Committee – Sen. Bob Corker (R-TN), Chair; Sen. Robert Menendez (D-NJ), Ranking Member

• House Foreign Affairs Committee – Rep. Ed Royce (R-CA-39), Chair; Rep. Eliot Engel (D-NY-16), Ranking Member

• Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee – Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI), Chair; Sen. Thomas Carper (D-DE), Ranking Member

• House Homeland Security Committee – Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX-10), Chair; Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS-2), Ranking Member

Legislative Update

• President’s Task Force on New Americans focusing on economic and language integration

• Briefing: Keeping Our Promise: Stories of Afghan Interpreters Serving with Us on the Front Lines

• National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month– Resolution passed Senate unanimously

• Department of Homeland Security (DHS) appropriations bill (H.R. 240)– Aims to defund the President’s executive action on

immigration reform, and would also negatively affect refugees and asylum seekers

Legislative Update

• Next week the House Judiciary Committee’s Immigration Subcommittee will consider several anti-immigration bills including:

– SAFE Act (H.R. 2278 in 113th Congress)

– Protection of Children Act (H.R. 5143 in 113th Congress)

– Asylum Reform and Border Protection Act (H.R. 5137 in 113th Congress)

Highlights of President’s Budget Request for Fiscal Year 2016 (FY16)

What we’re looking at: Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) and the State Department’s Bureau for Population, Refugees, and Migration (PRM).

Some highlights:

• $43 million to support a total of 143,000 new arrivals – 75,000 refugees and 68,000 other humanitarian arrivals.

• $482 million to provide legal representation to more than 30,000 unaccompanied minors and expand the Legal Orientation Program.

• $1 billion to support a comprehensive strategy for Central America to address underlying migration factors.

Call to Action

• Meet with your elected officials and urge them to support refugees

• Tell the stories of refugees to help educate your communities about the benefits of refugees

• Start thinking forward to World Refugee Day (June 20)

2015 Refugee Advocacy Calls

Please mark your calendars for the following National Refugee Advocacy calls:

• Friday, May 1st from 12:00-1:00pm EST

• Friday, August 7th from 12:00-1:00pm EST

• Friday, November 6th from 12:00-1:00pm EST

Please also make sure that you are registered for RCUSA Grassroots Advocacy listserv – RefugeeAdvocacy@googlegroups.com. Sign up at http://tinyurl.com/refugeelistserv.

ADVOCACY CONTACTS• Church World Service: Jen Smyers, jsmyers@cwsglobal.org

• Episcopal Migration Ministries: Katie Conway, kconway@episcopalchurch.org

• Ethiopian Community Development Council: Susan Kenney-Pfalzer, SKPfalzer@ecdcus.org

• HIAS: Elizabeth Mandelman, elizabeth.mandelman@hias.org

• International Rescue Committee: Anna Greene, anna.greene@rescue.org

• Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service: Brittney Nystrom, bnystrom@lirs.org

• Refugee Council USA: Shaina Ward, sward@rcusa.org

• U.S. Committee for Refugees & Immigrants: Esmeralda Lopez, elopez@uscridc.org

• U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops: Matt Wilch, mwilch@usccb.org

• World Relief: Jenny Yang, jgyang@worldrelief.org