A New Hampshire refugee resettlement agency is laying off 19 people, citing President Trump's halt on refugee arrivals and related funding, and another major resettlement organization is also bracing for potential cuts.

In January, President Trump suspended all new refugee resettlement in the United States, as his administration did during his first term in office. The administration also froze funding that goes towards agencies like Ascentria Care Alliance, which works with refugees in New Hampshire and Massachusetts.

A federal judge blocked the resettlement pause last month, but the administration appealed that decision — and the money and arrivals are still on hold.

Ascentria's president, Angela Bovill, said they haven't been paid for work dating back to November. Typically, the federal government reimburses Ascentria and other agencies for resettlement costs.

“We have cut some of our staff, as few as we can possibly cut and still provide as many services as we can,” Bovill said. “But that will get harder and harder as they continue to not pay us or cut more contracts, which continues to happen.”

Those affected at Ascentria include staff who helped arrivals adjust to their new communities with housing assistance, language classes and jobs. Bovill said the organization is still providing those services to refugees who arrived before the White House’s order.

“We're cobbling together as much as we can to continue to provide the services for the families that have recently arrived so that we can get them to be successful long term,” Bovill said.

Another resettlement organization in New Hampshire and Massachusetts, the International Institute of New England, is also preparing for possible cuts. Its president Jeff Thielman says they are owed more than a million dollars in back payment from the federal government, for work that happened before the funding pause.

“We've been able to stay afloat and keep going because of good fundraising, private support and some of our reserve funds,” Thielman said. “But that's not sustainable forever.”

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