[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 186 (Wednesday, September 27, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 66547-66548]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-21042]


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DEPARTMENT OF STATE

[Public Notice: 12195]


30-Day Notice of Proposed Information Collection: Welcome Corps 
Application

ACTION: Notice of request for public comment and submission to OMB of 
proposed collection of information.

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SUMMARY: The Department of State has submitted the information 
collection described below to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) 
for approval. In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 
we are requesting comments on this collection from all interested 
individuals and organizations. The purpose of this Notice is to allow 
30 days for public comment.

DATES: Submit comments up to October 27, 2023.

ADDRESSES: Written comments and recommendations for the proposed 
information collection should be sent within 30 days of publication of 
this notice to www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain. Find this information 
collection by selecting ``Currently under 30-day Review--Open for 
Public Comments'' or by using the search function.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Direct requests for additional 
information regarding the collection listed in this notice, including 
requests for copies of the proposed collection instrument and 
supporting documents to Cassie Le, who may be reached on 202-805-9291 
or at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
     Title of Information Collection: Welcome Corps 
Application.
     OMB Control Number: 1405-0256.
     Type of Request: Extension of a currently approved 
collection.
     Originating Office: PRM/A.
     Form Number: No form.
     Respondents: Respondents: Private Sponsor Groups (PSGs), 
groups of at least five or more individual American citizens or 
permanent residents who will be able to apply to sponsor the 
resettlement of refugees, and Private Sponsor Organizations (PSOs), 
established and/or incorporated organizations who will be able to apply 
to mobilize, organize, oversee, and/or offer support to Private Sponsor 
Groups.
     Estimated Number of Respondents: 2,020.
     Estimated Number of Responses: 2,020.
     Average Time per Response: 5.5 hours.
     Total Estimated Burden Time: 8,908 hours total.
     Frequency: Once per respondent.
     Obligation to Respond: Voluntary.
    We are soliciting public comments to permit the Department to:
     Evaluate whether the proposed information collection is 
necessary for the proper functions of the Department.
     Evaluate the accuracy of our estimate of the time and cost 
burden for this proposed collection, including the validity of the 
methodology and assumptions used.
     Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the 
information to be collected.
     Minimize the reporting burden on those who are to respond, 
including the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of 
information technology.
    Please note that comments submitted in response to this Notice are 
a public record. Before including any detailed personal information, 
you should be aware that your comments as submitted, including your 
personal information, will be available for public review.

Abstract of Proposed Collection

    In Executive Order 14013 on ``Rebuilding and Enhancing Programs to 
Resettle Refugees and Planning for the Impact of Climate Change on 
Migration'' issued in February 2021, President Biden directed the 
Department of State and Department of Health and Human Services to 
``capitalize on . . . private sponsorship of refugees'' as part of 
efforts to ``meet the challenges of restoring and expanding the [U.S. 
Refugee Admissions Program].'' To fulfill this directive, the 
Department of State is rolling out a program for private sponsorship of 
refugees approved for admission to the United States through the U.S. 
Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP), named ``the Welcome Corps.''
    Through the Welcome Corps application process, private sponsors 
accept primary responsibility to welcome arriving refugees and to 
provide core services/assistance to support their initial resettlement 
equivalent to what is provided by nonprofit resettlement agency 
partners through the U.S. Government-funded Reception and Placement 
(R&P) program. When private sponsors apply through the program, 
sponsors have the option to be matched with a refugee case already 
being processed through the USRAP or to refer specific individuals to 
access the USRAP through the P-4 Privately Sponsored Refugees category. 
The P-4 category, along with the other categories of cases that have 
access to the USRAP, is outlined in the annual Proposed Refugee 
Admissions--Report to Congress, which is submitted on behalf of the 
President in fulfillment of the requirements of section 207(d) of the 
Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1157) and authorized by the 
annual Presidential Determination for Refugee Admissions.
    Private sponsor entities include Private Sponsor Groups (groups of 
at least five or more individual American citizens or permanent 
residents who can apply to sponsor the resettlement of refugees) and 
Private Sponsor Organizations (established and/or incorporated 
organizations who can apply to mobilize, organize, oversee, and/or 
offer support to Private Sponsor Groups).
    As part of the Welcome Corps application process for private 
sponsors, biographic information is collected from Private Sponsor 
Groups (PSGs) and Private Sponsor Organizations (PSOs) to facilitate 
the placement of approved refugee applicants with private sponsors and 
to plan for refugee applicants to travel to the appropriate location of 
private sponsors within the United States. In instances where private 
sponsors are seeking to refer specific individuals to access the USRAP 
through the P-4 category, additional information is collected on 
refugee applicants, including biographic information, to assess whether 
refugee applicants meet the eligibility criteria to access the USRAP 
through the P-4 category. The information collected on refugee 
applicants will also assist Department of Homeland Security's U.S. 
Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) officials in conducting 
adjudications of applicants' refugee status.

Methodology

    The Department of State's Bureau of Population, Refugees, and 
Migration (PRM) has entered into a cooperative agreement with the 
Community Sponsorship Hub (CSH), which is managing a consortium of non-
governmental organizations (NGOs) to establish and oversee an online 
application process to intake applications from PSGs and PSOs and 
screen their applications for approval for participation in the Welcome 
Corps.

[[Page 66548]]

CSH and the NGO consortium it is managing will also screen referrals 
submitted by PSGs and PSOs of refugee applicants before sharing 
referrals with PRM for consideration of whether referred refugee 
applicants meet the eligibility criteria to be granted access to the 
USRAP through the P-4 category.
    As part of the online application process for PSGs, the NGO 
consortium will collect information on PSGs as part of completed 
applications submitted electronically by prospective private sponsors 
through the program website that is being built and managed by the 
consortium (www.welcomecorps.org). This will include biographic 
information on each member of the PSG, evidence that each member of the 
PSG has completed the required background checks through a third-party 
identified by the consortium, evidence that at least one member of the 
PSG has completed required online training developed by the consortium, 
and details on how PSGs will plan to provide initial resettlement 
support to the refugees who are matched to them through the Welcome 
Corps.
    In addition, the NGO consortium will also oversee a separate 
application process for PSOs and collect information from PSOs 
accordingly. This will include biographic information for a key point 
of contact at the PSO, background information on the organizational 
structure of the PSO, and information on the PSO's organizational 
resources and staffing capacity to mobilize, support, and oversee PSGs.
    The NGO consortium will also collect information on refugee 
applicants referred by PSGs and PSOs for access to the USRAP through 
the P-4 category that will be submitted electronically by PSGs and PSOs 
through the program website. This will include biographic information 
on each refugee applicant being referred, claimed relationships of the 
principal refugee applicant to all derivatives on the referral, their 
immigration status in the country of asylum, a narrative of the 
principal applicant's refugee claim, and supporting documentation.
    To support PRM's operational requirements to facilitate placements 
of refugee cases with PSGs (including those supported by specific 
PSOs), the consortium will share key biographic information of PSGs and 
PSOs with PRM. This will include points of contact of PSGs and PSOs, 
such as the name of the designated point of contact along with that 
private sponsor group member's address, phone number, email address, 
and other relevant contact information. Information collected by the 
NGO consortium on referred refugee applicants will also be shared with 
PRM to enable PRM to determine whether applicants meet the eligibility 
criteria for access to the USRAP through the P-4 category.
    The consortium will electronically transmit biographic information 
on PSGs and PSOs, along with information on refugee applicants, to 
PRM's Refugee Processing Center (RPC) through secure means. Biographic 
information on PSGs and PSOs will enable PRM to facilitate the matching 
of approved refugee applicants with approved PSGs or PSOs and to track 
the placement of refugee applicants, similarly to how PRM facilitates 
and tracks placement of refugee applicants supported by PRM's funded 
resettlement agency partners through the R&P Program. This will enable 
PRM to have a record of the relevant point of contact for each 
resettled refugee case supported by a PSG or PSO through the Welcome 
Corps.
    The information on refugee applicants will enable PRM to assess the 
eligibility of referred applicants to access the USRAP through the P-4 
category. Those meeting the eligibility criteria will be granted access 
to the USRAP for further processing. Referred refugee applicants 
approved for resettlement in the United States will be served by the 
private sponsors who referred them.

Kevin E. Bryant,
Deputy Director, Office of Directives Management, U.S. Department of 
State.
[FR Doc. 2023-21042 Filed 9-26-23; 8:45 am]
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