U.S. bishops issue wish list to Congress on funding for migration

U.S. bishops urged Congress to reauthorize the Religious Worker Visa Program, protect refugee services and unaccompanied children, and reject expanded enforcement and detention measures, warning that mass‑deportation policies would undermine due process and separate families.

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) sent a list of immigration-related requests to lawmakers June 1 as they are set to vote on fiscal 2027 appropriations.

In a letter sent to leaders of the House and Senate Appropriations Committees, Bishop Brendan J. Cahill of Victoria, Texas, wrote on behalf of the USCCB asking the committee to consider “additional priorities” in connection “to human life and dignity.”

“The well-being of immigrants, refugees, unaccompanied noncitizen children, victims of trafficking, and other populations, as well as our immigration system in general, is of deep concern to the Catholic Church,” wrote Cahill, chair of the bishops’ Committee on Migration.

“Our perspectives on these matters are grounded in Scripture and Catholic teaching, including our belief in the inherent and inviolable dignity of every person,” he said.

The letter was sent to Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine; Sen. Patty Murray, D-Washington; Rep. Tom Cole, R-Oklahoma; and Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Connecticut.

The bishops urged that funding continue for the Refugee and Entrant Assistance (REA) programs administered through the Office of Refugee Resettlement, as the programs are needed to assist refugees, victims of human trafficking, and other migrant groups.

They asked for “robust” appropriations for the Wage and Hour Division and the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of Justice Programs to support victims of trafficking, and funding for International Humanitarian Assistance and Emergency Refugee and Migration Assistance.

While acknowledging the governmentʼs right to enforce immigration laws, the bishops reiterated their opposition to expanded enforcement and detention measures, and asked for “more humane” alternatives.

The letter warned that mass deportation threatens due process, family unity, and discriminatory practice and asked Congress to ensure that people in detention facilities have access to religious and pastoral services.

Bishops’ requests

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is operating without fully enacted fiscal 2026 funding, and instead has been funded through continuing resolutions after a 76-day shutdown that ended April 30. The Trump administration is asking Congress to approve $118.4 billion in fiscal 2027 DHS spending, which is a $6.6 billion increase over the continuing resolution levels.

The bishops asked the committee to consider permanently reauthorizing the Religious Worker Visa Program, “to avoid the uncertainty and disruption” that its expiration creates for religious organizations, their workers, and communities they serve.

The bishops also reiterated their request for Congress to take up and pass H.R. 2672/S. 1298, named by sponsors as “the Religious Workforce Protection Act.” The legislation would let DHS keep certain religious workers in the U.S. beyond the five-year limit on R‑1 visas while their green card or immigrant visa applications are still pending.

The bishops urged Congress to support agencies that help “promote trust” in the immigration system that “have been weakened” or “ceased operating entirely,” including the DHS Office of Inspector General and the Office of Immigration Detention Ombudsman.

Concerned about “nationality-based restrictions on legal immigration pathways,” the bishops asked that the State Department and DHS be required to report the status of all nationality-based restrictions.

Bishops urged lawmakers to fund the Legal Orientation Program, support the immigration court system, and oversee functions related to immigration enforcement in their consideration of the fiscal 2027 Commerce‑Justice‑Science (CJS) appropriations bill. U.S. House consideration is next for CJS appropriations; the House Appropriations Committee approved the legislation May 13.

Source: https://www.ewtnnews.com/world/us/u-s-bishops-issue-wish-list-to-congress-on-funding-for-migration