[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 35, Number 39 (Monday, October 4, 1999)]
[Pages 1878-1879]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Memorandum on Fiscal Year 2000 Refugee Admissions

September 30, 1999

Presidential Determination No. 99-45

Memorandum for the Secretary of State

Subject: Presidential Determination on FY 2000 Refugee Admissions 
Numbers and Authorizations of In-Country Refugee Status Pursuant to 
Sections 207 and 101(a)(42), Respectively, of the Immigration and 
Nationality Act, and Determination Pursuant to Section 2(b)(2) of the 
Migration and Refugee Assistance Act, as Amended

    In accordance with section 207 of the Immigration and Nationality 
Act (the ``Act'') (8 U.S.C. 1157), as amended, and after appropriate 
consultation with the Congress, I hereby make the following 
determinations and authorize the following actions:
    The admission of up to 90,000 refugees to the United States during 
FY 2000 is justified by humanitarian concerns or is otherwise in the 
national interest; provided, however, that this number shall be 
understood as including persons admitted to the United States during FY 
2000 with Federal refugee

[[Page 1879]]

resettlement assistance under the Amerasian immigrant admissions 
program, as provided below.
    The 90,000 admissions numbers shall be allocated among refugees of 
special humanitarian concern to the United States in accordance with the 
following regional allocations; provided, however, that the number 
allocated to the East Asia region shall include persons admitted to the 
United States during FY 2000 with Federal refugee resettlement 
assistance under section 584 of the Foreign Operations, Export 
Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Act of 1988, as contained 
in section 101(e) of Public Law 100-202 (Amerasian immigrants and their 
family members); provided further that the number allocated to the 
former Soviet Union shall include persons admitted who were nationals of 
the former Soviet Union, or in the case of persons having no 
nationality, who were habitual residents of the former Soviet Union, 
prior to September 2, 1991:

Africa.........................................................   18,000
East Asia......................................................    8,000
Former Yugoslavia..............................................   17,000
Kosovo Crisis..................................................   10,000
NIS/Baltics....................................................   20,000
Latin America/Caribbean........................................    3,000
Near East/South Asia...........................................    8,000
Unallocated....................................................    6,000
 

    The 6,000 unallocated numbers shall be allocated as needed to 
regional ceilings where shortfalls develop. Unused admissions numbers 
allocated to a particular region may be transferred to one or more other 
regions if there is an overriding need for greater numbers for the 
region or regions to which the numbers are being transferred. You are 
hereby authorized and directed to consult with the Judiciary Committees 
of the Congress prior to any such use of the unallocated numbers or 
reallocation of numbers from one region to another.
    Pursuant to section 2(b)(2) of the Migration and Refugee Assistance 
Act of 1962, as amended, 22 U.S.C. 2601(b)(2), I hereby determine that 
assistance to or on behalf of persons applying for admission to the 
United States as part of the overseas refugee admissions program will 
contribute to the foreign policy interests of the United States and 
designate such persons for this purpose.
    An additional 10,000 refugee admissions numbers shall be made 
available during FY 2000 for the adjustment to permanent resident status 
under section 209(b) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 
1159(b)) of aliens who have been granted asylum in the United States 
under section 208 of the Act (8 U.S.C. 1158), as this is justified by 
humanitarian concerns or is otherwise in the national interest.
    In accordance with section 101(a)(42) of the Act (8 U.S.C. 
1101(a)(42)) and after appropriate consultation with the Congress, I 
also specify that, for FY 2000, the following persons may, if otherwise 
qualified, be considered refugees for the purpose of admission to the 
United States within their countries of nationality or habitual 
residence:
a           Persons in Vietnam
b           Persons in Cuba
c           Persons in the former Soviet Union
    You are authorized and directed to report this determination to the 
Congress immediately and to publish it in the Federal Register.
                                            William J. Clinton
The Attorney General
The Secretary of Health and Human Services

Note: This memorandum was released by the Office of the Press Secretary 
on October 1.