Citizen Ceremonies Canceled

Dutchess, Putnam clerks say they have new dates for next year
Routine naturalization ceremonies scheduled for this month in Putnam, Dutchess and Ulster counties to welcome new U.S. citizens were abruptly canceled last week by the federal government, surprising local officials.
Events planned for Wednesday (Dec. 3) in Putnam, Friday (Dec. 5) in Dutchess and Dec. 12 in Ulster were called off by the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Services (USCIS), which approves applicants for citizenship.
Brad Kendall, the Dutchess County clerk, said that USCIS told his office that it didn't have enough candidates for the Dec. 3 ceremony but confirmed dates for seven ceremonies in 2026. The agency gave the same reason - a lack of candidates - to Putnam County Clerk Michael Bartolotti, but confirmed dates for next year, with the first scheduled for Feb. 4.
"To my recollection, we have never had a cancellation of this nature in the past," said Bartolotti.

Last month, ceremonies scheduled in seven New York counties, including Ulster, Rockland and Westchester, were also canceled but rescheduled after Rep. Mike Lawler, a Republican whose district includes Philipstown, intervened.
USCIS said it canceled ceremonies because the county judges may not have the authority to conduct them. Lawler said on Nov. 20 that the agency wanted to end events in Rockland and Westchester altogether, requiring applicants to travel to New York City.
In a Nov. 14 letter to USCIS Director Joseph Edlow, Lawler said making immigrants travel to New York City "would take multiple hours as well as cost these folks money due to bridge and road tolls, as well as gasoline," he said.
In announcing the return of the ceremonies, Lawler described them as "among the most moving and patriotic events I attend." For his wife (a naturalized citizen from Moldova) and other immigrants, taking the oath "represents years of hard work, sacrifice and an unwavering belief in the American Dream," he said.
Civics Lesson
The newly revised civics test for immigrants seeking naturalization has 128 questions. During the exam, a USCIS officer asks 20 questions, chosen at random, and the applicant must answer at least 12 correctly.
See how you'd do with the practice test at dub.sh/128-questions, but note that, on the oral test, the multiple-choice answers are not provided. In the previous test, applicants had to answer 10 of 100 possible questions correctly.
The USCIS said it revised the test in response to an executive order issued Jan. 20 by President Trump, "Protecting the United States from Foreign Terrorists and Other National Security and Public Safety Threats."
In an email sent this week to the clerks in Putnam, Dutchess and Ulster counties, the agency's Albany director, Gwynne Dinolfo, asked them to confirm in writing that their judges were authorized under federal law to oversee the ceremonies. She said that the judge must have jurisdiction over civil actions "in which the amount in controversy is unlimited. Because county courts in New York have a jurisdictional limit of $25,000 in civil cases, [the judge] may not be authorized to administer the naturalization ceremony."
Taylor Bruck, the Ulster County clerk, told the Daily Freeman that the directive was confusing. "The law hasn't changed, so implying that the counties have been doing something unlawful for the last 15 years without anyone mentioning it doesn't make sense," he said on Tuesday. "No one said anything about this during the first Trump administration, so why now?"

Naturalization ceremonies complete a process in which legal permanent residents (aka "green card" holders) have been vetted and passed English-language and civics tests. Naturalized citizens have full voting rights and are protected from deportation except in limited circumstances.
On Nov. 13, USCIS announced new steps aimed at "restoring integrity in the naturalization process by ensuring that only those who truly deserve it are granted the most sacred status we...