WASHINGTON, DC – On the last day of Fiscal Year 2020, just 34 minutes before the statutory deadline to do so, the Trump Administration notified Congress of its intention to admit an historic low of 15,000 refugees to the United States in FY2021. FWD.us President Todd Schulte released the following statement:

“The Trump Administration, under cover of darkness, once again slashed the refugee program—a moral failure that betrays our nation’s most fundamental principles.

“Turning our backs on vulnerable families fleeing extreme violence and persecution at a time of unprecedented global crisis harkens back to some of the worst moments in our nation’s history. American leadership to protect the most vulnerable people from around the world is an imperative, both for people here today and those seeking refuge on our shores.

“Their horrid, relentless effort to slash nearly every legal immigration avenue is an assault on the promise of what America can and must be.”

Background
In FY20, the Trump Administration admitted the lowest number of refugees to the United States since the Refugee Act of 1980 was enacted by Congress, according to government data.

In Fiscal Year 2016, 84,994 refugees were admitted to the United States. If we had maintained that level of admissions over the past four years, 339,976 of the world’s most vulnerable people – including those fleeing political persecution in Venezuela, Hong Kong and elsewhere – would have been protected. Instead, the Trump Administration has admitted a total of only 115,416 refugees over the past four years, leaving nearly 225,000 people in some of the world’s most dire humanitarian situations.