Lawsuit Could Empower States to Reject Refugees

If successful, a lawsuit by the state of Tennessee against the federal government could empower states to withdraw from the federal refugee resettlement program.

The assessment comes in a new report by the Center for Immigration Studies that spotlights the federal government’s ability to compel a state to pay for federal programs they don’t want.

Over time, writes CIS fellow Don Barnett, the author of the report, the federal government “has shifted the fiscal burden of resettling refugees to the states, often requiring resources be taken from social services, infrastructure, schools, as well as other state taxpayer priorities to implement a federal program.” . . .

If the court rules in Tennessee’s favor, states would be able to withdraw fully from the refugee resettlement program by negating what Barnett describes as a legally questionable 1994 regulation.

Barnett explained that the federal government uses the regulation (45 CFR 400.301) rather than statutory law to allow private non-profits to operate in a state where the state has asked to withdraw from the program. (Read more from “Lawsuit Could Empower States to Reject Refugees” HERE)

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