Utah Catholic Community Services suspends refugee resettlement

Catholic Community Services of Utah is winding down its Refugees Resettlement program amid uncertainty about its future and a funding deficit created by new federal policy. While the agency plans to continue serving refugees already in its care, no new refugees will be served.

The agency is asking Utahns for gifts of both time and other resources to see that those who have been recently resettled in Utah can get the help they need to adapt and thrive.

Between Oct. 1, 2024 and January 22, 2025, 300 refugees were welcomed by the agency to Utah, part of the 125,000 approved nationally to come to the U.S. in 2025, said Aden Batar, the charitable organization’s director of Migration and Refugee Services. Last year, 700 refugees were resettled in Utah with help from CCS, which is tasked with helping incoming refugees adapt to life in America.

The agency arranges housing, utilities, helps refugees find jobs and navigate enrolling children in school and aids in other tasks during the initial period of resettlement.

Now, with funding suspended, including money that was allocated but has been withdrawn, CCS Utah has already spent about $1 million the federal government no longer has clear plans to reimburse. And every month, CCS Utah incurs about $75,000 in housing-related costs alone, with no idea where the money will come from now, said Batar.

He’s hoping the community of caring Utahns will step up. The agency expects to provide some support to the new arrivals through mid 2026.

“Our goal is to keep people in their homes so they don’t become homeless,” Batar said. “We are desperately looking to the community to cover the gap.” He added that in the 30 years he’s worked in this program, “for the first time, I am worried.”

Volunteers, especially the Refugee Family Mentors, are also an important piece in helping newly arrived refugees do well in their new country and community.

Kids on their own

The immigration program at Catholic Community Services represents unaccompanied minors — youths without parents, a close relative who can care for them or someone here with a provable claim to custody. There are now about 126 unaccompanied minors who are already in Utah, but whose cases are not yet completed in the courts and CCS Utah has the contract to represent them in immigration court. Without funding, those children’s immigration court representation status is in limbo. Some of the children are 5 or 6 years old, said Batar, who noted he can’t imagine how they could go to court and represent themselves.

Last week the federal government terminated the contract that would help them, including by providing immigration attorneys to help complete their cases so they can be placed into the appropriate social service-type programs.

The refugees who recently arrived and need help, including the unaccompanied minors, are the agency’s two big needs at the moment, said Batar, adding the United States approved their arrivals and should be obligated to help them.

Pause on refugee arrivals

When Donald Trump took office in January, he said he would pause refugee arrivals and within 90 days see how refugee resettlement aligned with U.S. interests. That 90 days is up April 20, but people working in the field of refugee resettlement don’t know what to expect.

The Refugee Act of 1980, approved by Congress, prevents “zeroing out” the program entirely. The number of allowed arrivals and the categories are set each year. The Biden administration set the target number for last year at 125,000.

Advocates for refugees have hoped that while there might be some changes as the program is reviewed and possibly scaled back or beefed up, as Batar put it — but no one knows what the future holds. Initially, refugee arrivals were canceled until an appeals court allowed those already at a certain stage in the process and were approved to enter the country.

Meanwhile, CCS Utah has already let go of 25 employees and those who remain have big caseloads but few resources available to help the refugees resettle.

Other programs still operating

While the resettlement program is winding down, other Catholic Community Service programs, including the Immigration and Refugee Foster Care will continue. So will the six Basic Needs programs in Salt Lake City and Ogden.

In a news release, CCS Utah said it “continues to adapt its services to meet the needs of Utah’s most vulnerable populations.”

For more information or to help, visit ccsutah.org