Senator Hall has suggested to Governor Abbott an Interstate Compact among the states that would give governors a tool to administer authority over refugee resettlement programs.
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In a lawsuit filed Wednesday afternoon in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, Attorney General Ken Paxton claims the federal government and the International Rescue Committee – one of about 20 private nonprofits that have a state contract to resettle refugees in Texas – are violating federal law by moving forward with the planned resettlement of two Syrian families. And the International Rescue Committee’s Dallas branch informed the state it would continue aiding Syrian refugees placed in Texas despite Abbott’s orders.
The lawsuit will test how much power governors have to keep certain refugees out of their states – a major question after more than half of states’ leaders announced last month they wanted to keep out Syrians.
“The point of this lawsuit is not about specific refugees, it is about protecting Texans by ensuring that the federal government fulfills its obligation to properly vet the refugees and cooperate and consult with the state”, he said.
Meanwhile, Aaron Rippenkroeger, CEO of Refugee Services of Texas, told ThinkProgress that his workers plan to “continue to serve our clients while we seek guidance on the ramifications of the [Texas government’s] request to discontinue resettlement services for Syrian refugees in the future”.
The Texas Health and Human Services Commission sued, asking the U.S. District Court in Dallas for an immediate restraining order and a hearing by December 9 for an injunction that would prevent resettlement. The act requires that the federal government consult with state authorities.
Texas is one of the nation’s top states for the resettlement of an annual flow of about 70,000 refugees into the U.S. Texas has become one of the top three states, along with California and MI, in Syrian refugee resettlement. It also said in the letter that Texas, “until further notice, will refuse to cooperate with the resettlement of any Syrian refugees in Texas”. “However it is important not to conflate terrorists with the Syrian refugees who are seeking sanctuary in the United States”, a Monday statement from the group reads.
Supporters of the refugees say that Paxton misunderstands federal law.
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Texas takes in roughly 10 percent of the refugees resettled in the United States, partnering with local volunteer agencies to help refugees transition to the State and pay associated costs.
