A couple of notes on the U.S. Citizenship Act, President Biden's immigration reform bill, as it relates to refugees and humanitarian relief.

The legislation seeks to ramp up resettlement of refugees in the U.S. and beyond.

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The bill would require at least 1 designated refugee processing center in a safe, secure location in El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, or any other Central American country the Secretary of State deems appropriate.

It explicitly calls for a sufficient level of refugee officers to meet the need for processing demand. This is notable, as the Trump administration shifted human resources away from the Refugee Corps over the previous 4 years.

The bill would also restore the Central American Minors program, which would provide certain minors in El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras (or any other C. American country the Sec. of State identifies) the opportunity to reunite with U.S.-based family.

The legislation seeks to expand alternatives to detention like the Family Case Management Program -- which, depending on scale, could be a big win against private prison companies who profit to the tune of billions off the incarceration of black and brown immigrants.

Significantly, it goes beyond just reinstituting the Family Case Management Program, and specifies that the gov't shall contract with qualified nonprofits to operate it -- a major departure, given that GEO Group, a private prison company, was responsible for running the pilot.

The bill establishes a "U.S. Citizenship and Integration Foundation" to spur innovation in the promotion and expansion of citizenship preparation programs for lawful permanent residents, and to coordinate immigrant integration with State and local entities.

It also authorizes grants for pilot programs seeking to improve immigrant integration. Businesses, civic groups, faith-based organizations could participate to help immigrants learn English, deliver workforce training, teach US civics, and engage the larger community.

Similarly, it authorizes grant funding to nonprofits, educational institutions, private organizations, or other community-based groups to deliver workforce development programs in an effort to better leverage the economic contributions of immigrants.

The bill would also make refugees, asylees and certain special immigrants eligible for in-state tuition at higher education institutions. As the daughter of refugees who went on to become public school teachers and strived so I could go to Yale, this really resonates with me.

Another incredible development. The bill would seemingly expand the SIV program, which resettles Afghan and Iraqi nationals who risked their lives to assist the U.S. gov't or military, to include Syrian nationals as well. Places a 5,000 slot limit on admissions of Syrians.