States’ Refugee Resettlement Authority
Refugee Assistance Within State and Local Jurisdictions
Responding to reports that one individual involved in the Paris attacks was carrying a Syrian passport (which subsequent reports indicate may have been fake or stolen), a number of governors have recently expressed an intention to restrict the resettlement of Syrian refugees within their States. These announcements have prompted questions about States’ authority in the refugee resettlement process and, particularly, whether a State concerned about the resettlement of Syrian refugees within its jurisdiction may take action to forestall or prevent such resettlement. It is not always clear from a governor’s statements what he or she means when saying, for example,…
