UPDATE: Niskanen Center is also a subcontractor on a $1.25 MILLION federally funded project to help redesign refugee resettlement across America. And HHS is now recruiting states to pilot the new system. The Trump administration began funding the Welcoming Initiative for Newcomers through HHS with $1 million in February 2026, followed by another $256,748 in August. Niskanen’s own September report discloses: “The Niskanen Center is a subcontractor of WIN.” It describes the assessment project as “financed 100% with federal funds.” The project’s stated deliverables include a “nationwide readiness map” showing states’ readiness to adopt the new framework, alongside a roadmap for implementation. WIN identifies World Education Services and the Shapiro Foundation as lead partners. The underlying state questionnaire asks officials where they could accommodate ADDITIONAL refugees. The options include major metropolitan areas, secondary cities, smaller urban areas and “Rural areas.” Then it asks: “Please list specific regions, metros, or communities where capacity may exist.” Officials are also asked to estimate how many refugees their states could support annually—with an option for 2,500-plus—and whether the new system would increase that capacity. These are planning estimates, not placement commitments. The local-provider survey goes further. It asks organizations to rate how much “Community receptivity” and “Local political context” limit their ability to receive additional refugees. Those appear alongside housing affordability, wages, staffing and access to public benefits. The same questionnaire asks whether expanded benefits, higher funding per person and longer service periods would improve refugee outcomes. Now there is a federal application deadline. HHS’s September 28 letter tells interested governors or their designees to submit pilot proposals by NOVEMBER 2. States must explain: • How they would select refugee-placement locations. • How they would distribute cases among local providers. • The anticipated number and geographic distribution of placement locations. • Their projected capacity and consultation with local municipalities. HHS also lists “public opinion/landscape” among the factors states should consider. Under the pilot, participating states would take responsibility for placement and service delivery while ORR retains federal authority. Some components are expected to begin in January–March 2027, with others starting later that fiscal year.