Catholic Charities Fort Worth reverses course, will lead Texas Refugee Services through 2026

Catholic Charities Fort Worth will continue serving as the Texas Office for Refugees, leading resettlement efforts for the state of Texas. 

The July 17 announcement from CEO and President Michael Iglio, comes after the organization announced in June that it would no longer serve in its federally funded role in leading Texas’ refugee resettlement starting Oct. 1, 2025. 

Now, the organization said it would continue its role in statewide resettlement through the end of its federal contract on Sept. 30, 2026. 

Since 2021, the Fort Worth nonprofit has operated the Texas Office for Refugees, the statewide agency designated by the federal government to lead refugee resettlement. Texas withdrew from the nation’s refugee resettlement program in 2016, effectively leaving nonprofits to administer federal refugee funds.

The previously planned transition was set to allow the nonprofit to “refocus its leadership and resources on local, client-facing programs primarily” within the Catholic Diocese of Fort Worth and its longstanding Refugee Services department, Iglio said in a June 2 statement. 

After deeper reflection and “thoughtful input from the community and our partners,” Iglio said, the organization “recognized that an early withdrawal as the Replacement Designee for the state of Texas could risk serious disruptions in services to those we serve — something we could not in good conscience allow.” 

Catholic Charities Fort Worth has 24 charity partners, a spokesperson for the nonprofit told the Fort Worth Report. Over 5,000 refugees made Texas their home in 2023, leading the nation in refugee resettlement, according to a November 2024 report by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

Catholic Charities Fort Worth was one of several aid groups that sued the federal government earlier in 2025 after the Trump administration announced and then reversed a federal funding pause in January.

The organization filed a March 3 suit against the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., accusing the government of unlawfully freezing grants allocated to the refugee resettlement program. Catholic Charities Fort Worth said many other organizations received their allocated funds when the order was reversed, while its payment requests went unanswered. 

Federal attorneys later acknowledged that of the 50 jurisdictions where the federal government funds refugee services, only the grant in Texas — administered by Catholic Charities Fort Worth — remained paused through March.

In a court filing, the federal government said it flagged Catholic Charities for a “program integrity review” and paused its funding to explore whether the organization “billed for activities that were outside the scope” of its grants and whether the grants were structured to pay for activities that exceeded the requirements of the Refugee Act of 1980.

Catholic Charities has been at the forefront of political tensions over faith-based groups that work with refugees or migrants. Conservative activists have said the organization incentivizes illegal immigration “while sometimes accusing faith groups of breaking the law or working with drug cartels,” according to a 2024 Religion News Service report. 

Bo French, Tarrant County Republican Party chair, has been among the most vocal critics of Catholic Charities Fort Worth, releasing multiple statements accusing the organization of being a “willing accomplice” in increasing the number of immigrants in the U.S. without legal status.

In a Q&A document released by Catholic Charities Fort Worth and the Texas Office for Refugees in 2024, the organization said it “does not support, promote or facilitate illegal border crossings” and only assists eligible clients who have been legally admitted into the U.S. 

After legal back and forth over paused funding, Catholic Charities Fort Worth received its $47 million in funds on March 17, according to court documents. 

The deposited funds came days after the charity warned it could have laid off 169 employees, according to a notification the charity submitted to the Texas Workforce Commission. Other affiliates of Catholic Charities in Dallas, Houston and Galveston also announced a series of layoffs since the January executive order pausing refugee resettlement funding. 

Now, Catholic Charities Fort Worth will use the remaining time in its contract, Iglio said, “for a more stable and responsible transition that ensures the well-being of clients across Texas.” 

Marissa Greene is a Report for America corps member, covering faith for the Fort Worth Report. You can contact her at marissa.greene@fortworthreport.org.

At the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here.

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