Biden Eyes Private Sponsorship For Refugee Resettlement
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President Joe Biden is poised to build on an idea from the Reagan era to raise the number of refugees brought to the United States. He wants to start a test program for allowing private sponsorship of resettlements.
Refugee-aid groups contracted by the government receive a lot of private money now. But in the 1980s and '90s, there was a test program that allowed for privately financed resettlements, said Matthew La Corte, government affairs manager and immigration policy at the nonpartisan Niskanen Center.
A new paper by La Corte said there is much the U.S. could learn from a private sponsorship program in Canada.
“So, Canada gives us important lessons on how to restructure our refugee system. The United States historically has had the largest refugee resettlement system in the world. We can get back to that,” he said.
The United Nations counted more than 26 million refugees last year. Most fled Syria, which has in the past been a top country of origin of people starting over in Arizona.
The U.S. resettlement system was dramatically reduced under former President Donald Trump. As its capacity gets rebuilt, Biden hopes to also test a private resettlement program.
La Corte said allowing private sponsorships would mean refugees already have a family, who’s trusted by the government and resettlement organizations, when they get here.
“People to teach them English. To work with them on understanding American society, finding jobs, finding friends, applying for school,” he said.
La Corte said, in the short-term, private sponsorships should count toward the annual resettlement cap set by the president. Eventually, though, he thinks there should be no limit.
