I UNDERSTAND THAT CONGRESS HAS LEGISLATIVELY ADDRESSED THE PLIGHT OF CHRISTIAN REFUGEES. AND I AM HOPEFUL OF THE RECENT ANNOUNCEMENT THAT THE SOVIETS WILL SOON PERMIT THE COMMENCEMENT OF DIRECT FLIGHTS. AS OUR REFUGEE POLICIES HAVE BEEN BASED ON THE PREMISE THAT DIRECT FLIGHTS WOULD BE IMPLEMENTED, WE HAVE A VESTED INTEREST AND OBLIGATION TO SEE THEM BEGIN. LAST YEAR, WE WERE TOLD AT THE CONSULTATION HEARING THAT CLOSING THE ROME-VIENNA PIPELINE AND MOVING THE REFUGEE ADJUDICATION CENTER TO MOSCOW WOULD SAVE MILLIONS OF DOLLARS. I AM INTERESTED ON THE SAVINGS FIGURES THAT HAVE COME IN SO FAR. REALIZE IT STILL MAY BE EARLY FOR COMPLETE PROJECTIONS. LAST FALL I ASKED IF ANY OF THE SAVINGS IN INTERNATIONAL PROCESSING COULD BE RECHANNELED INTO THE MUCH-NEEDED DOMESTIC RESETTLEMENT BUDGET. I REQUESTED GAO TO CONDUCT A REPORT ON THIS ISSUE. THE GAO REPORT FEATURED MANY CHARTS BUT LEFT MY BASIC QUESTIONS UNANSWERED. IT IS IMPORTANT TO DETERMINE WHETHER WE CAN IMPLEMENT ANY COST-SAVING MEASURES, CREATIVE PROGRAMMING, OR PRIVATE INITIATIVES IN OUR REFUGEE PROGRAM - BOTH INTERNATIONALLY AND IN ORDER TO MAXIMIZE FREEDOM FOR REFUGEES AROUND THE WORLD. I WELCOME THE OPPORTUNITY TO ADDRESS THESE IMPORTANT ISSUES TODAY. THANK YOU MR. CHAIRMAN. [Whereupon, at 12:02 p.m., the committee was adjourned.] I APPENDIX Presidential Documents 41979 Federal Register Vol 85, No. 201 Wednesday, October 17, 1990 Title The President Presidential Determination No. 91-3 of October 12, 1990 Determination of FY 1991 Refugee Admissions Numbers and Memorandum for the United States Coordinator for Refugee Affairs In accordance with section 207 of the Immigration and Nationality Act ("the Act") (8 U.S.C. 1157), and after appropriate consultation with the Congress, I hereby make the following determinations and authorize the following actions: a. The admission of up to 131,000 refugees to the United States during FY 1991 is justified by humanitarian concerns or is otherwise in the national Interest provided, however, that this number shall be understood as including persons admitted to the United States during FY 1991 with Federal refugee resettlement assistance under the Amerasian admissions program, as provided in paragraph (b) below. Ten thousand of these admissions numbers shall be set aside for private sector admissions Initiatives, and may be used for any region. The admission of refugees using these numbers shall be contingent upon the availability of private sector funding sufficient to cover the reasonable costs of such admis sions. b. The 131,000 admissions shall be allocated among refugees of special humanitarian concern to the United States as described in the documentation presented to the Congress during the consultations that preceded this determination and in accordance with the following regional allocations; provided. however, that the number allocated to the East Asia region shall include the number of persons admitted to the United States during FY 1991 with Federal refugee resettlement assistance under section 584 of the Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Act of 1988, as contained in section 101(e) of Public Law 100-202 (Amerasians and their family members): Utilization of the 121.000 federally funded admissions numbers shall be limited by such public and private funds as shall be available to the Department of State and the Department of Health and Human Services for refugee and Amerasian admissions in FY 1991. You are hereby authorized and directed to so advise the judiciary committees of the Congress. Unused admissions numbers allocated to a particular region within the 121.000 federally funded ceiling may be transferred to one or more other regions if there is an overriding need for greater numbers for the region or regions to which the numbers are being transferred. You are hereby authorized and directed to consult with the judiciary committees of the Congress prior to any such reallocation. 41980 Federal Register / Vol. 55. No. 201 / Wednesday, October 17, 1990 / Presidential Documents The 10.000 privately funded admissions not designated for any country or region may be used for refugees of special humanitarian concern to the United States in any region of the world at any time during the fiscal year. You are hereby authorized and directed to notify the judiciary committees of the Congress in advance of the intended use of these numbers. An additional 5.000 refugee admissions numbers shall be made available during FY 1991 for the adjustment to permanent resident status under section 209(b) of the Act (8 U.S.C. 1159[b]) of aliens who have been granted asylum in the United States under section 208 of the Act (8 U.S.C. 1158). as this is justified by humanitarian concerns or is otherwise in the national interest. In accordance with section 101(a)(42) of the Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(42)), I also specify, after appropriate consultation with the Congress, that the following persons may, if otherwise qualified, be considered refugees for the purpose of admission to the United States while still within their countries of nationality or habitual residence: a. Persons in Vietnam and Laos who have past or present ties to the United States or who have been or currently are in reeducation camps in Vietnam or seminar camps in Laos, and their accompanying family members. b. Present and former political prisoners, persons in imminent danger of loss of life, and other persons of compelling concern to the United States in countries of Latin America and the Caribbean, and their accompanying family members. c. Persons in Cuba who are (1) in immediate danger of loss of life and for whom there appears to be no alternative to resettlement in the United States. or (2) are of compelling concern to the United States, such as former or present political prisoners, dissidents, or human rights and religious activists, or (3) were employed by the United States Government for at least 1 year prior to the claim for refugee status; and their accompanying family members. d. Persons in the Soviet Union and Romania. You are hereby authorized and directed to report this determination to the cc: The Secretary of State The Attorney General Ay Bush The Secretary of Health and Human Services THE WHITE HOUSE, Washington, October 12, 1990. (FR Doc. 80-24500 Filed 10-15-00 12:45 pm) Billing code 3195-01-M In accordance with Section 207 of The Refugee Act of 1980 (P.L. 96-212), members of the Committee on the Judiciary have now consulted with your representatives on the proposed refugee admissions for fiscal year 1991. But As we have in previous years, we continue to support the objectives of your program to assist refugees of "special humanitarian concern" to the United States. once again we remain troubled over the inadequacy of funding arrangements required to support this program. There has been a serious erosion in federal support for state and local resettlement programs, and we have increasingly relied upon private sources, raising questions of federal responsibility, as well as the equitable treatment of all refugees of concern to the United States. This year we have been asked to approve 11,000 refugee admissions for which State Department funding remains totally uncertain. And refugee resettlement funding to the States by the Department of Health and Human Services has plummeted from 36 months of assistance just 5 years ago to only 4 months in some key programs. Further resettlement funding reductions appear likely in 1991, absent supplemental funding which your representatives assured us would not be sought by the Administration. - In addition, we want to repeat our concern of last year that stronger efforts must be made to maintain an appropriate balance between the resettlement of refugees in the United States and the provision of assistance to refugees in first asylum countries. As you know, in recent years the percentage of our contributions to refugee assistance abroad has declined as our refugee admissions have increased. 2 - These issues suggest there is a need for better budgetary planning of anticipating the worst-case refugee scenarios rather than relying on more optimistic trends. We would urge the Administration to work with us and the other appropriate committees of Congress to provide earlier and more adequate budgetary authority and appropriations for refugee needs both here and abroad. Although there are a number of other issues and concerns which members of the Committee raised during the consultations we had with your representatives, these will be outlined in separate letters to Secretary of State James A. Baker, III. But we want to commend you for our country's leadership regarding refugee assistance, and to indicate that we concur in your refugee admissions proposals for FY 1991. Many thanks for your consideration, and best wishes. |