Phone: 832-586-5741
VOL 12 No. 52
www.fbindependent.com
email: editor@fbindependent.com
FORT BEND FAIR. BALANCED. INFORMATIVE. WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 25, 2019
P. O.BOX 623, SUGAR LAND, TX 77487-0623
Official newspaper of Fort Bend County, Missouri City & Stafford
Refugee resettlement consent letter delayed, not dead
The total number of refugees resettled in the United States per state over the last five fiscal years.
Katy Rotary Club members present a check for $3,000 to Fort Bend County Pct. 3 Commissioner Andy Meyers toward the Fort Bend Charities. Since 2003, Commissioner Meyers has donated more than a million dollars through Fort Bend Charities to a broad range of charities serving Fort Bend County. More on Page 2.
By SESHADRI KUMAR Fort Bend County Judge KP George pulled the consent letter for refugee resettlement from the commissioners court agenda last week, but the issue is far from resolved. In fact, a host of legal issues remain to be answered and the original executive order 13888 issued by President Donald Trump itself is facing legal challenge. George had placed the item on the commissioners court agenda, essentially based on the letter from the Catholic Charities Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston, and taking the request at its face value. Following strong objections from cities like the City of Sugar Land and some community members, coupled with the possibility that he would not have three votes on the commissioners court to adopt the letter, George withdrew the item. Had he gone ahead and if the item was voted down, he could have sent a no consent letter. Now, the issue is in limbo. The state of Texas has also not taken any action on this letter yet. According to one interpretation, the state has to affirmatively send a letter stating yes or no. Not sending a letter would amount to accepting refugees to be resettled in the state. The city of Sugar Land sought appropriate communication between the county and the municipalities regarding what is expected of them in resettling refugees in their cities. “It is unclear if the county aims to commit only county resources for the purpose of resettling the refugees or if there is an expectation that
municipalities would need to be equipped to support resettlement,” the city’s letter said. If the city was expected to support resettlement, the city was not notified by the county of its expectation. According to the executive order, there is no deadline for submitting consent. Postponing the item will allow the county to develop public policy with the input of municipalities which will be ultimately affected, the letter said. According to published reports, 21 states have expressed their consent to the federal government so far. Even if politics is taken out of the discussion, the cost implication is not known at this time for a county to commit itself to the program. Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society, Church World Service, and Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service, three faithbased national resettlement agencies that hold agreements with the federal government to assist refugees admitted to the United States, have filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District in Maryland, challenging “the President’s unprecedented attempt to condition the resettlement of refugees on state and local governments providing advance written consent to refugee resettlement in their jurisdictions.” “The President’s order and resulting agency actions threaten to deprive thousands of refugees of their best chance to successfully build a new life and to burden thousands of U.S. families who are waiting to reunite with their parents, children, and other relatives fleeing persecution,” according to the plaintiffs.
“The Order thus establishes a default whereby refugees will not be resettled unless the state and locality take the affirmative step of providing written consent— never before required—to such resettlement. In doing so, the Executive Order contravenes the Refugee Act, exceeds the scope of the Administration’s statutory authority, and violates constitutional federalism principles. “ The plaintiffs alleged that the executive order violated the Refugee Act, the Administrative Procedure Act and the U.S. Constitution. The suspensions of refugee admissions, the slashing of the annual refugee admissions goal, the failure to meet even slashed goals, and the delay in making the statutorily required determination—have not just harmed refugees waiting to come to the United States. They have also devastated refugees already here and the organizations that seek to help them, according to the petition. Within his first week in office, President Trump made good on his promise by signing Executive Order 13769, which, among other things, called for a 120-day suspension of the U.S. refugee admissions program and an indefinite ban on the resettlement of Syrian refugees. “Executive Order 13769 also dramatically slashed the annual goal for refugee admissions set by President Obama by more than half. Federal courts immediately blocked certain provisions of Executive Order 13769, but the Trump Administration was undeterred. It continued with an onslaught of policies See REFUGEE, Page 3.
Sugar Land gets Performance Management Leadership Award
(Front row, L-R) during a recent City Council recognition are Performance and Accountability Director Reena Varghese; Data Analyst Hongqiang Sun; Performance and Accountability Analyst Rachel Owens; Performance and Accountability Manager Karen Ramirez; Mayor Joe Zimmerman, (back row) Councilmembers Stewart Jacobson, Himesh Gandhi and Carol McCutcheon; City Brennan Vacek and Aedin Waldorf won Best Actor and Best Actress at the 2019 TAPPS One-Act Manager Allen Bogard; and Councilmembers Naushad Kermally, Steve Porter and Jennifer Lane. See story on Page 3. District competition for their roles in The Diviners. Story on Page 2.
Sponsored by Serving Fort Bend County for 28 years!