The Refugee Protection Act of 2019 reimagined America’s response to the global refugee crisis. Here is everything you need to know about the Refugee Protection Act of 2019.
The Refugee Protection Act of 2019 is a bill that aims to provide for the admission and protection of refugees, asylees, and other vulnerable individuals. It also seeks to provide for the processing of refugees and asylum seekers in the Western Hemisphere and to modify certain special immigrant visa programs.
The bill was introduced on November 21, 2019, and was sponsored by Senator Leahy from Vermont in the Senate, and Representative Lofgren from California in the House, and had 17 cosponsors. The act is a sweeping blueprint for restoring and reinvigorating the United States’ refugee and asylum systems.
It was introduced to counterweight the Trump administration’s efforts to prevent people from fleeing their homes and seeking refuge in the United States. It was introduced at a crucial time, as earlier that month President Trump set the refugee admissions goal for FY20 at a historic low of 18,000 and in September signed an Executive Order which will require Governors and local elected officials to approve refugee resettlement in their communities for the first time in the history of U.S. refugee resettlement. Unfortunately, the bill died in both the Senate and the House and was never brought to a vote.
Main Goals of the Bill
One of the main goals of the Refugee Protection Act of 2019 is to ensure due process for all asylum seekers, which includes representation for unaccompanied children and keeping families together by ensuring that children remain with their parents or caretakers. It also aimed to establish renewable employment authorization for asylum seekers, as well as decrease refugees’ wait time to receive work authorization.
Additionally, this bill will ensure that U.S. laws match international obligations under the Refugee Convention to not penalize refugees and asylum-seekers for how or where they enter the country. This bill would also:
- Reverse former Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ devastating Matter of A-B- decision, which has severely undermined the asylum claims of those fleeing domestic violence and gang brutality;
- Put an end to “asylum ban 2.0,” the Administration’s rule barring asylum for virtually all non-Mexicans arriving at the southern border;
- Allow those denied asylum due to the Administration’s cruel Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP) or asylum bans to reopen their cases;
- Eliminate the current practice of “metering,” which restricts the number of asylum seekers permitted to request protection at border;
- Prohibit any criminal prosecution of asylum seekers for merely crossing the border and ensure that asylum seekers are not subjected to needless, punitive detention; and
- Guarantee access to counsel for immigrant and asylum-seeking children.
Possibilities for Future Change
Under an administration change, old bills sometimes get revisited. However, this bill does not seem to be on the table for the new administration. At this time, it does not look like the Refugee Protection Act of 2019 will be brought back for consideration, even though the current Biden administration has reversed course on some of the immigration choices of the previous administration.
While the bill does not look like it will be revisited, there is hope for the future of refugee rights in the United States. The Biden administration has taken other steps to ensure the safety of refugees entering the U.S. The steps include plans for boosting refugee admissions, preserving deportation relief for undocumented immigrants who came to the U.S. as children, and not enforcing the “public charge” rule that denies green cards to immigrants who might use public benefits like Medicaid.
Related: Immigration for Women to the United States
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