The Trump administration is weighing whether to limit refugee admissions for the next fiscal year to less than 50,000, which would be the lowest level since at least 1980.
Citing security concerns about the vetting process for refugees, President Donald Trump set the annual refugee cap at 50,000 in a January executive order that also temporarily banned travel from seven Muslim-majority countries.
Now, current and former officials familiar with the discussions say the White House is looking to maintain that level or possibly set an even lower number for Fiscal Year 2018, reports the New York Times.
Deliberations over refugee limits come as the Supreme Court stayed a lower court ruling against the administration’s travel ban Tuesday, allowing the government to stop resettlement of any refugees that don’t have close family or business ties in the U.S. As a result of the order, some 25,000 refugees are temporarily barred from resettlement.
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