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Governor Hutcherson defends limited refugee resettlement, says vetting and local consent are in place
Summary
At a Senate City, County & Local Affairs Committee hearing, Governor Hutcherson defended his decision to accept a limited number of refugees, described federal vetting and local consent letters, introduced resettled families and Canopy Northwest Arkansas’ resettlement director, and faced questions on costs, vetting limits and potential conflicts.
Governor Hutcherson told the Senate City, County & Local Affairs Committee he supports the resettlement of a limited number of refugees to Arkansas after reviewing federal vetting procedures and consulting with state and local officials. "A refugee is not someone who crosses our borders illegally," Hutcherson said, and he outlined vetting that includes interagency security checks, Homeland Security interviews, fingerprint and biometric scans and medical exams.
Hutcherson said changes under the Trump administration reduced the annual refugee ceiling to 18,000 and that the Department of State indicated fewer than 50 refugees are likely to be assigned to Arkansas in FY2020. He said he had written to Secretary Pompeo to express Arkansas’s willingness to accept refugees and that consent letters were submitted from Washington County Judge…
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