On the Eve of July 4th, Refugee Council USA Condemns the House Passage of the Budget Reconciliation Bill and Its Blatantly Anti-Refugee, Anti-Asylum, Anti-Immigrant, Anti-Family, Anti-American Provisions
July 3, 2025
Washington, DC —Refugee Council USA unequivocally condemns the House passage of the budget reconciliation package, H.R.1, the “One Big Beautiful Bill” (OBBB), which signals a major shift away from protecting refugee and immigrant communities: hunger, loss of healthcare and benefits, crushing fees, unchecked enforcement, and family separation.
“This legislation is a shocking betrayal of our American values, challenges the foundations of our democracy, and represents an unprecedented rollback of basic health, nutrition, and humanitarian protections for all community members. It is a direct attack on our nation’s moral and legal commitments, forcing refugee families to go hungry or without healthcare. This legislation will not strengthen our economy or national security, but instead will do irreparable harm to individuals we as a nation have promised to protect. And it will impose unnecessary costs on local systems already under strain. RCUSA urges Congress to reverse course and move forward by prioritizing legislation that affirms human dignity, supports basic support services for all communities, and upholds the fundamental right to seek asylum, refuge, and humanitarian protection,” said John Slocum, Executive Director, Refugee Council USA.
More information about how this bill will negatively impact refugees, asylum seekers, and immigrants is available here. RCUSA’s previous statements opposing the budget reconciliation bill are available here, here, and here.
Media Contact: Mariam Sayeed, msayeed@rcusa.org
RCUSA is a diverse coalition advocating for just and humane laws and policies, and the promotion of dialogue and communication among government, civil society, and those who need protection and welcome. Individual RCUSA members do not all address all refugee-related issues, nor do all individual members approach common refugee-related issues identically.
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