Union County leaders voted 11-1 to reject a resolution Tuesday that would have disagreed with Governor Bill Lee's decision to continue allowing refugee resettlement in Tennessee.

Union County commissioner Jeff Brantley proposed the resolution, but fellow county leaders said the issue of refugee resettlement does not directly impact the county since it has not volunteered in the past to take in refugees under the Department of State's Reception Placement Program.

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Brantley said he thinks the county 'needs to say no' because rural counties would 'have to suffer.'

Others disagreed with Brantley's assessment before calling to reject the resolution, saying Governor Lee was 'in good company' with his decision as only one state, Texas, opted out of resettlement under the new policy.

In East Tennessee, only Knoxville and Chattanooga are considered to be resettlement sites for refugees sponsored through Bridge Refugee Services -- a local agency affiliated with Episcopal Migration Ministries.

EMM is one of nine larger national agencies partnered with the U.S. government who facilitates the resettlement process, saying less than half a percent of the world's refugees will ever be resettled.

Knoxville Mayor Indya Kincannon and Chattanooga Mayor Andy Berke both said they will continue to support refugee resettlement in their cities. More than 2,000 refugees resettled in Tennessee during the 2016 budget year. That number was 692 in 2018.

This all comes after President Donald Trump issued an executive order in 2019 that allows local and state governments to formally opt-in or out of the national placement program, giving them the power to refuse refugees. Texas is the only state to openly reject refugee resettlement -- which prompted a federal judge to temporarily block the policy.

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