The governors are responding to heightened concerns that terrorists might use the refugees as cover to sneak across borders. Authorities said a Syrian passport was found near one of the attackers, and the Paris prosecutors' office says fingerprints from the attacker match those of someone who passed through Greece in October.
Millions
of Syrians have fled to neighboring Middle Eastern countries and
Europe, and President Barack Obama's administration has pledged to
accept about 10,000 Syrian refugees in the next 12 months. The U.S.
State Department said the refugees would be spread across the country.
Republican presidential candidates have criticized the plan.
In response to the calls from governors to prevent Syrian refugees from coming to their states, Lavinia Limon, president and CEO of the U.S Committee for Refugees and Immigration, said under the Refugee Act of 1980 governors cannot legally block refugees from settling in their communities.
Here's a look at where some states stand:
ALABAMA
In response to the calls from governors to prevent Syrian refugees from coming to their states, Lavinia Limon, president and CEO of the U.S Committee for Refugees and Immigration, said under the Refugee Act of 1980 governors cannot legally block refugees from settling in their communities.
Here's a look at where some states stand:
ALABAMA
Republican
Gov. Robert Bentley announced Sunday that he would refuse Syrian
refugees relocating to the state, saying: "I will not stand complicit to
a policy that places the citizens of Alabama in harm's way." Bentley's
news release said the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency was diligently
working with federal officials to monitor any possible threats. There
has been no credible intelligence of terror threats in Alabama so far,
according to the governor's office.
ARIZONA -
Gov. Doug Ducey is joining a growing list of Republican governors
calling for an immediate halt to the placement of any new refugees from
the Middle East. And Ducey made it clear that the state is within its
legal rights to do so, saying that he is invoking the state's right
under federal law to immediately consult with U.S. officials on any new
refugee placements. He also wants Congress to change the law to give
states more oversight over refugee placement. Ducey says national
leaders must react to protect its citizens.
ARKANSAS
Republican
Gov. Asa Hutchinson says he opposes Syrian refugees being relocated to
Arkansas. Hutchinson, a former undersecretary of the federal Department
of Homeland Security, said he doesn't believe the United States should
be a permanent place of relocation for the refugees and that he thinks
Europe, Asia or Africa are logically the best places for resettlement or
temporary asylum.
CONNECTICUT
Gov.
Dannel P. Malloy says Connecticut will continue to accept refugees from
Syria. The Democrat told NBC Connecticut on Monday the state is
committed to accepting the refugees and believes background checks could
easily be performed and his spokesman, Devon Puglia, said the
administration is continuing to work with federal officials and await
guidance as "they develop procedures following the tragedy in Paris."
FLORIDA
Gov.
Rick Scott is calling on Congress to block attempts by the Obama
administration to relocate 425 Syrian refugees to Florida. The
Republican governor on Monday wrote a letter to congressional leaders
that asked them to take "immediate and aggressive action" to prevent the
relocation of Syrian refugees without an "extensive evaluation" of the
risk the refugees may pose to national security.
ILLINOIS
Gov.
Bruce Rauner joined the growing list of Republican governors who
announced they want to prevent Syrian refugees from relocating in their
states. In a statement issued Monday, Rauner said the state will
"temporarily suspend accepting new Syrian refugees and consider all of
our legal options pending a full review of the process by the U.S.
Department of Homeland Security."
IOWA
Saying
he wants to protect residents of his state in the wake of terrorist
attacks in Paris, Gov. Terry Branstad acknowledged that governors might
not be have the legal authority to prevent the Syrian refugees from
relocating to their states because "this is a federal program." Still,
the Republican said he wants more information from the federal
government about where people are being placed and the vetting process.
INDIANA
Republican
Gov. Mike Pence announced Monday that he was ordering state agencies to
suspend the relocation of any more Syrian refugees to the state until
he received assurances from the federal government that proper security
measures had been taken.
LOUISIANA
Gov.
Bobby Jindal - a GOP presidential contender - said he wants more
information from the White House "in hopes that the night of horror in
Paris is not duplicated here." Jindal sent a letter to the White House
on Saturday, demanding to know how many Syrian refugees have been
resettled in his state. He also wants to know the extent of background
screening before Syrians entered the U.S. United States as well as what
monitoring would be done once the refugees make it to Louisiana.
MAINE
Gov.
Paul LePage said it is "irresponsible" to allow Syrian refugees into
the country in the wake of the terrorist attacks in Paris. The
Republican governor, who said he does "not know for certain" if Maine
has any Syrian refugees right now, plans to point out in a radio address
on Monday that one of his first actions as governor was to prevent
Maine from serving as a "sanctuary state" for people living in the
country without legal permission.
MASSACHUSETTS
Gov.
Charlie Baker says he's opposed to allowing more Syrian refugees into
Massachusetts in the aftermath of the terrorist attacks in Paris and
that he wants to know much more about the federal government's vetting
process before allowing them into the state. Democratic Boston Mayor
also says he wants to know about how the federal government screens
refugees.
MICHIGAN
Gov.
Rick Snyder had bucked many fellow Republican leaders by welcoming
refugees to Michigan, which has a large Arab-American population. But he
said Sunday that the state is postponing efforts to accept refugees
until federal officials fully review security procedures and clearances.
Snyder said that while he is proud of the state's history of
immigration, its "first priority is protecting the safety of our
residents."
MISSISSIPPI
Gov.
Phil Bryant said Monday that he's trying to find out if there are any
plans by the federal government to relocate any Syrian refugees in the
state and if there are the Republican said he will "do everything
humanly possible" to stop it.
NEW HAMPSHIRE
New
Hampshire Gov. Maggie Hassan says the United States should halt the
acceptance of Syrian refugees until intelligence and defense officials
can assure a strong process for vetting refugees. Hassan also says more
facts are needed on how the attackers got into Paris before the United
States takes more Syrian refugees.
PENNSYLVANIA
Gov.
Tom Wolf said his administration will keep working with the federal
government to properly screen and resettle Syrian refugees in the state.
The Democrat said Monday that the federal government thinks it can
handle an additional 10,000 refugees that the White House said in
September that it would accept from Syria.
TEXAS
Gov.
Greg Abbott on Monday ordered Texas' refugee resettlement program not
to accept any more Syrians in the wake of the Paris terrorist attacks.
In a letter to Obama, the Republican also urged scrapping federal plans
to accept more Syrian refugees into the country as a whole. He said the
federal government can't perform "proper security checks" on Syrians.
VERMONT
Vermont
Gov. Peter Shumlin says other governors who say they won't allow Syrian
refugees into their states are "stomping on the qualities that make
America great." Shumlin says there is an extensive screening process in
place for refugees. Since 1989 about 7,000 refugees have been resettled
in Vermont, and while none of them are from Syria, there are plans to
settle a small number in the state during the current fiscal year.
WISCONSIN
Gov.
Scott Walker said in September that the United States should not take
in any more refugees from Syria and now, in the wake of the terrorist
attack in Paris, Republican leaders of the Wisconsin state Assembly are
saying the same thing. They're circulating a letter they plan to send to
President Barack Obama's administration saying they don't want any
Syrian refugees.
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