Assembly Members Push For Funding For Refugee Resettlement

State Assembly members representing upstate communities, including Anthony Brindisi, are pushing for a $12 million package of funding for refugee resettlement agencies in the wake of the Trump travel ban.

The Assemblymen also want additional statewide funding to provide legal services to refugees.

They say if fully implemented, President Trump's refugee ban would cost the agencies millions of dollars in lost revenue.

Brindisi says the travel ban would cost the Mohawk Valley Resource Center for Refugees $200,000 in federal funding and the loss of eight workers in its resettlement department.

Brindisi said “Since 1979, the Mohawk Valley Resource Center for Refugees has helped resettle more than 16,000 people from other nations. About 400 are settled each year, and about 100 have been settled in Utica this year alone. These new residents have stories similar to those many of our ancestors had, fleeing war-torn nations, refugee camps, or persecution to pursue a better life for their families. Many have quickly become part of the fabric of our community. They have found employment, purchased a home, pay taxes and continue pursuing the American dream. The Refugee Center in Utica and other resettlement agencies provide the help these newcomers need to become the productive citizens many of them are today."

Over 5,000 refugees were resettled in New York in 2016, with 94 percent going to communities upstate. More than 400 resettled in Utica.