A law facilitating resettlement for Iranian religious minorities, including Jews, seeking refuge was extended for another year.
The language, known as the Lautenberg amendment, was included in the massive spending bill passed by Congress and signed last week into law by President Barack Obama.
“The Lautenberg amendment has served as a lifeline for over two decades to tens of thousands of Jewish, Christian, Baha’i, and other religious minorities fleeing Iran and the Former Soviet Union,” Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., a Jewish congressman who sponsored the language, said in a statement.
The law, which loosens tough refugee status standards for designated persecuted religious minorities, is named for the late Sen. Frank Lautenberg, D-N.J., who crafted it in the late 1980s to assist Jews seeking a path out of the Soviet Union. — jta