Dunn County has no legal authority to pause refugee resettlement
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By LeAnn R. Ralph
MENOMONIE — According to a legal opinion from the corporation counsel’s office, Dunn County has no legal authority to pause refugee resettlement in Dunn County.
The Dunn County Health and Human Services Board on the November 21 agenda included two items about refugee resettlement.
The first item was requested by Luke Wilsey, county board supervisor, and Kelly McCullough, county board chair.
The second item was requested by the Health and Human Service Board chair Diane Morehouse, county board supervisor from Menomonie, regarding the corporation counsel’s review of United States law and case law addressing refugee resettlement.
Six members of the public addressed the Health and Human Services Board opposing refugee resettlement in Dunn County and asked for a resolution to “pause” refugee resettlement.
The request to pause refugee resettlement stems from World Relief opening an office in Eau Claire with the intention of resettling 75 refugees.
Refugees are a protected class under federal law and should not be confused with immigrants. Refugees are fleeing from a situation in their home country where their lives are in danger, and there is a vigorous process implemented by the federal government to determine which refugees are allowed to resettle in the United States.
During public comments, county resident Carol Breslin said that a number of people have been asking for a year for a resolution to pause refugee resettlement.
Saying that Dunn County is overstepping its legal authority “is ridiculous,” Breslin said.
Refugee resettlement would be an appropriate referendum question. McCullough is abdicating the county’s authority to the federal government, she said.
Mike Cooper said the Health and Human Services Board should have voted on the issue of refugee resettlement before the election rather than after the county board of supervisors were “safely re-elected to their seats” and questioned why the HHS board was taking a vote now.
Cooper said “why not last month before the election,” so presumably he was referring to the November 5 general election.
County board supervisors are non-partisan positions, and the election for county board supervisors is held every two years in April.
The refugee resettlement items were on the agenda for discussion. There was no resolution for the board to consider. A vote could not be taken on the agenda items.
Cooper also was advocating for a moratorium on refugee resettlement.
Financial assistance
William Utphall of Boyceville said that World Relief provides assistance for refugees for the first 90 days, and then the cost of providing assistance falls on the county taxpayers.
Utphall questioned whether the sheriff’s department and the courts possessed the resources to provide translators, for example.
It is not true that the cost of refugee resettlement becomes the responsibility of local taxpayers after 90 days.
According to an e-mail message in June of 2024 from Gina Paige, communications director at the Wisconsin Department of Children and Families, in response to a question regarding the resources available for refugee resettlement, the “Department of State, Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration, funds the initial 90 days of the receptions and placement program, which means housing, food, clothing, and other basic needs.”
After 90 days, the federal Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Refugee Resettlement “funds support services for refugees up to 5 years of arrival to include employment and employability services, English as a Second Language (ESL), and other related services that support economic and social self-sufficiency,” Paige wrote.
According to the United States Department of Health and Human Services website, the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) “ORR was established as a part of the Refugee Act of 1980, designated to support refugees, unaccompanied refugee minors, and Cuban and Haitian entrants. Since its establishment in 1980, Congress has continually expanded ORR’s mandate to meet the evolving needs of refugees, asylees, survivors of torture, and victims of trafficking. In 2003, Congress expanded ORR’s role to serve unaccompanied children. Since then, Congress has made additional populations eligible for ORR Refugee Resettlement Program (RRP) services.”
Federal law
Luke Wilsey, county board supervisor for District 8, submitted a public comment to be read during the Health and Human Services Board meeting.
Wilsey said that federal law provides for refugee resettlement in consultation with local government and that Dunn County should follow the example of surrounding counties, such as St. Croix County and Barron County, and approve a resolution putting a pause on refugee resettlement.
Dunn County approving a resolution to pause refugee resettlement would not be binding on the federal government and would have no impact on refugee resettlement.
County board rules
Supervisor Wilsey is asking for a resolution to pause refugee resettlement, but the Health and Human Services Board must act according to the rules established by the Dunn County Board, said Morehouse, the chair of the Heath and Human Services Board.
A formal resolution has not come before the Health and Human Services Board for consideration, so the item is for discussion only, she said.
The county has received a petition with 330 signatures asking for a moratorium on refugee resettlement by World Relief, Morehouse said.
Dunn County has a population of nearly 46,000.
There is no resolution on which to act, Morehouse said, adding that she questioned whether the Health and Human Services Board has the authority to act on a resolution regarding refugee resettlement.
Corporation counsel
After consulting with Dunn County corporation counsel and the Eau Claire County corporation counsel, “it is clear that under U.S. code and statute, that neither this committee nor the county board has any legal authority to supersede federal law or to block federal resettlement of
refugees,” Morehouse said.
“I also learned in consultation with the Eau Claire County corporation counsel, that counties have the authority to implement moratoriums, which are prohibitions of certain activities within the county. That authority for moratoriums would be limited to zoning related items and not on the issue of refugee resettlement,” Morehouse said.
The memorandum from the corporation counsel regarding the supremacy clause of the United States Constitution is that it is the prerogative of the federal government and not the state government or county government to determine the resettlement of refugees, said Andrew Hagen, county board supervisor from Menomonie.
Morehouse said she wanted to correct one piece of information included in the corporation counsel’s report.
The Eau Claire County Board held a vote on a resolution for an economic study related to refugee resettlement in December of 2023, but the resolution failed on a vote of 18 “no” to 9 “yes,” Morehouse said.
Other counties
Patrick Breslin, county board supervisor from Boyceville, noted that Morehouse had talked with the corporation counsel from Eau Claire County and asked about the corporation counsels from Chippewa County, St. Croix County or Barron County.
Those three counties have passed a resolution on pausing refugee resettlement.
Morehouse said she had not talked with the corporation counsels from the other counties.
A resolution would not have been brought before the other counties if the corporation counsels did not believe in the ability to bring a resolution forward to pause refugee resettlement, Breslin said.
St. Croix County
St. Croix County Corporation Counsel Heather Amos did tell the St. Croix County Board that a resolution on pausing refugee resettlement would have no practical effect on refugee resettlement.
The Colfax Messenger covered the two meetings of the St. Croix County Board in March related to refugee resettlement for the Glenwood City Tribune Press Reporter.
The atmosphere at the first St. Croix County regular board meeting in March regarding refugee resettlement included shouting and raised voices advocating for keeping refugees out of St. Croix County.
One person at the March 5 meeting had a different point of view from the majority of the people who spoke and was opposed to the resolutions but did not speak during the public comments, said Bob Long, chair of the St. Croix County Board, at the March 12 meeting.
As that person was leaving the building, “they were accosted physically and verbally, right here in the building,” he said.
“And what makes it worse is there were a group of people around this individual who was accosted, and do you know what their reaction was? They laughed at that abuse,” Long said, “They laughed.”
Long, as the chief presiding officer of the St. Croix County Board meeting, as he is allowed to do by state law, did not accept any public comments at the special meeting on March 12.
Symbolic
Kathy Leaf, St. County Board supervisor, had pointed out that if the resolution about refugee resettlement was approved by the county board, St. Croix County has no jurisdiction over pausing, and the resettlement can continue.
“So we are doing all of these calisthenics for a symbolic resolution,” she said.
“Correct. Refugees could be resettled in Eau Claire tomorrow, and this resolution would not have any teeth to do anything about it. It’s a recommendation to the entities listed on the resolution,” said Heather Amos, corporation counsel.
St. Croix County Board supervisor Daniel Hansen said he had asked the county administrator about the cost of drafting the resolutions and holding a special meeting on something that the federal government has a right to do.
St. Croix County spent $10,000 holding the meeting and writing the resolutions to “let everybody in this room have an emotional response to us doing this,” he said.
The St. Croix County Board ultimately approved the resolution supporting an immediate pause on the placement of refugees within St. Croix County on a vote of 15 “yes” to four “no.”
Referendum
Patrick Breslin told the Dunn County Health and Human Services Board that the issue of refugee resettlement should come before county residents as a referendum question.
The voters should decide, he said.
The Wisconsin Legislature has made changes regarding the county’s ability to hold referendums, Morehouse said.
The issue of holding referendums and the state making it more difficult should be added to the county’s legislative agenda, Hagen said.
Referendums are an “excellent way” to hear from voters, he said.
Most of the referendum questions that have come before voters from Dunn County have been advisory referendums, except in the case of a referendum to exceed to the revenue limit.
Gary Stene, county board supervisor from Colfax and a member of Health and Human Services Board, said that Patrick Breslin had asked about the process for bringing a resolution and holding a referendum.
The information should be provided because it would be educational for everyone, he said.
Barbara Fagan, Dunn County assistant corporation counsel, said she had understood Patrick Breslin to be making a direct request.
According to a report from the Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau in February of 2020, county residents can use the binding referendum process for relocating a county seat; consolidating counties; approving salary increases for county board supervisors in counties with a population of less than 750,000; changing the number of supervisors; creating or abolishing the office of county executive in counties with a population of less than 750,000; creating the office of county administrator; approving board action related to conducting a county fair; and approving board action to exceed the revenue limits.
