Fiscal Year 2017 Planning

Date: April 21, 2016

Dear State Refugee Coordinator,

As you know, the annual ceiling for refugee admissions will be established by the President following consultations with Congress towards the end of fiscal year (FY) 2016. Although the FY 2017 appropriation and refugee ceiling have not yet been determined, states and resettlement agencies should use a ceiling of 100,000 refugees for planning purposes. The Department of State’s Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration (PRM) has engaged in discussions with the resettlement agencies to propose expanded or new sites as part of their FY 2017 Reception and Placement Program submission. ORR and PRM will work together to ensure that expansion efforts, including timelines, are well coordinated.  We encourage you to discuss local capacity with the resettlement agencies, and as appropriate, include any expansion or new sites in your ORR-1 and State Plan submissions due August 15th. ORR’s FY 2017 budget request includes funding to support this increase; however, this request is contingent upon approval and the overall availability of funds.  

We also expect significant growth in the placement of unaccompanied refugee minors (URM) through the Reception and Placement Program.  PRM’s target goal for URM in FY 2016 is 350, increasing to 500 in FY 2017. The URM Program’s capacity will need to increase quickly to serve the increasing number of URMs, and we ask existing programs to consider expansion options.  If you do not have a URM Program and are interested in opening a new site, please work closely with ORR and the resettlement agencies (LIRS or USCCB) in developing a proposal for consideration. The resettlement agencies will submit their proposals to PRM on May 20th. Please consider the needs of these vulnerable children as you plan for overall capacity for next year.

If you have questions about capacity or your ORR-1 submission, please contact your Regional Representative.  If you have questions specific to the URM Program, please contact your URM Analyst.

Thank you in advance for your assistance. 

Sincerely,
Robert Carey, Director
Office of Refugee Resettlement