[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 62 (Tuesday, April 1, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 15520-15526]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-8188]
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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Refugee Resettlement Program; Proposed Availability of Formula
Allocation Funding for FY 1997 Targeted Assistance Grants for Services
to Refugees in Local Areas of High Need
AGENCY: Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR), ACF, HHS.
ACTION: Notice of proposed availability of formula allocation funding
for FY 1997 targeted assistance grants to States for services to
refugees \1\ in local areas of high need.
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\1\ In addition to persons who meet all requirements of 45 CFR
400.43, ``Requirements for documentation of refugee status,''
eligibility for targeted assistance includes Cuban and Haitian
entrants, certain Amerasians from Vietnam who are admitted to the
U.S. as immigrants, and certain Amerasians from Vietnam who are U.S.
citizens. (See section II of this notice on ``Authorization.'') The
term ``refugee'', used in this notice for convenience, is intended
to encompass such additional persons who are eligible to participate
in refugee program services, including the targeted assistance
program.
Refugees admitted to the U.S. under admissions numbers set aside
for private-sector-initiative admissions are not eligible to be
served under the targeted assistance program (or under other
programs supported by Federal refugee funds) during their period of
coverage under their sponsoring agency's agreement with the
Department of State--usually two years from their date of arrival,
or until they obtain permanent resident alien status, whichever
comes first.
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[[Page 15521]]
SUMMARY: This notice announces the proposed availability of funds and
award procedures for FY 1997 targeted assistance grants for services to
refugees under the Refugee Resettlement Program (RRP). These grants are
for service provision in localities with large refugee populations,
high refugee concentrations, and high use of public assistance, and
where specific needs exist for supplementation of currently available
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resources.
DATES: Comments on this notice must be received May 1, 1997.
ADDRESSES: Address written comments, in duplicate, to: Toyo Biddle,
Director, Division of Refugee Self-Sufficiency, Office of Refugee
Resettlement, align Administration for Children and Families, 370
L'Enfant Promenade, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20447.
APPLICATION DEADLINE: The deadline for applications will be established
by the final notice; applications should not be sent in response to
this notice of proposed allocations.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Toyo Biddle (202) 401-9250.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Purpose and Scope
This notice announces the proposed availability of funds for grants
for targeted assistance for services to refugees in counties where,
because of factors such as unusually large refugee populations, high
refugee concentrations, and high use of public assistance, there exists
and can be demonstrated a specific need for supplementation of
resources for services to this population.
The Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) anticipates having
available $49,857,000 in FY 1997 funds for the targeted assistance
program (TAP) as part of the FY 1997 appropriation for the Department
of Health and Human Services (Pub. L. No. 104-208).
The FY 1997 House Appropriations Committee Report (H.R. Rept. No.
104-659) reads as follows with respect to targeted assistance funds:
The Committee has transferred funds for discretionary activities
previously provided under targeted assistance to the social services
programs. The Committee intends that remaining funding be allocated
according to the formula contained in the House and Senate versions of
H.R. 2202.
The formula allocation provision referred to in the House Report
was never enacted into law and is therefore not in effect.
The Director of the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) proposes
to use the $49,857,000 appropriated for FY 1997 targeted assistance as
follows:
$25,871,300 will be allocated under the 5-year population
formula, as set forth in this notice.
$19,000,000 will be awarded under a discretionary grant
announcement to States to provide supportive services to elderly
refugees, particularly those who will soon lose SSI eligibility due to
the alien eligibility restrictions in the welfare reform law. A grant
announcement will be issued separately which sets forth application
requirements and evaluation criteria.
$4,985,700 (10% of the total) will be used to fund
continuation grants under a discretionary grant announcement that was
issued in FY 1996.
In addition, the Office of Refugee Resettlement will have available
an additional $5,000,000 in FY 1997 funds for the targeted assistance
discretionary program through the Foreign Operations, Export Financing,
and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 1997 (Pub. L. No. 104-208).
These funds will augment the 10-percent of the targeted assistance
program which is set-aside for grants to localities most heavily
impacted by the influx of refugees such as Laotian Hmong, Cambodians
and Soviet Pentecostals, including secondary migrants who entered the
United States after October 1, 1979.
The purpose of targeted assistance grants is to provide, through a
process of local planning and implementation, direct services intended
to result in the economic self-sufficiency and reduced welfare
dependency of refugees through job placements.
The targeted assistance program reflects the requirements of
section 412(c)(2)(B) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA),
which provides that targeted assistance grants shall be made available
``(i) primarily for the purpose of facilitating refugee employment and
achievement of self-sufficiency, (ii) in a manner that does not
supplant other refugee program funds and that assures that not less
than 95 percent of the amount of the grant award is made available to
the county or other local entity.''
II. Authorization
Targeted assistance projects are funded under the authority of
section 412(c)(2) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), as
amended by the Refugee Assistance Extension Act of 1986 (Pub. L. No.
99-605), 8 U.S.C. 1522(c); section 501(a) of the Refugee Education
Assistance Act of 1980 (Pub. L. No. 96-422), 8 U.S.C. 1522 note,
insofar as it incorporates by reference with respect to Cuban and
Haitian entrants the authorities pertaining to assistance for refugees
established by section 412(c)(2) of the INA, as cited above; section
584(c) of the Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related
Programs Appropriations Act, 1988, as included in the FY 1988
Continuing Resolution (Pub. L. No. 100-202), insofar as it incorporates
by reference with respect to certain Amerasians from Vietnam the
authorities pertaining to assistance for refugees established by
section 412(c)(2) of the INA, as cited above, including certain
Amerasians from Vietnam who are U.S. citizens, as provided under title
II of the Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related Programs
Appropriations Acts, 1989 (Pub. L. No. 100-461), 1990 (Pub. L. No. 101-
167), and 1991 (Pub. L. No. 101-513).
III. Client and Service Priorities
Targeted assistance funding must be used to assist refugee families
to achieve economic independence. To this end, States and counties are
required to ensure that a coherent family self-sufficiency plan is
developed for each eligible family that addresses the family's needs
from time of arrival until attainment of economic independence. (See 45
CFR 400.79 and 400.156(g).) Each family self-sufficiency plan should
address a family's needs for both employment-related services and other
needed social services. The family self-sufficiency plan must include:
(1) A determination of the income level a family would have to earn to
exceed its cash grant and move into self-support without suffering a
monetary penalty; (2) a strategy and timetable for obtaining that level
of family income through the placement in employment of sufficient
numbers of employable family members at sufficient wage levels; and (3)
employability plans for every employable member of the family. In local
jurisdictions that have both targeted assistance and refugee social
services programs, one family self-sufficiency plan may be developed
for a family that incorporates both targeted assistance and refugee
social services.
Services funded through the targeted assistance program are
required to focus primarily on those refugees who, either because of
their protracted use of public assistance or difficulty in securing
employment, continue to need services
[[Page 15522]]
beyond the initial years of resettlement. States may not provide
services funded under this notice, except for referral and interpreter
services, to refugees who have been in the United States for more than
60 months (5 years).
In accordance with 45 CFR 400.314, States are required to provide
targeted assistance services to refugees in the following order of
priority, except in certain individual extreme circumstances: (a)
Refugees who are cash assistance recipients, particularly long-term
recipients; (b) unemployed refugees who are not receiving cash
assistance; and (c) employed refugees in need of services to retain
employment or to attain economic independence.
In addition to the statutory requirement that TAP funds be used
``primarily for the purpose of facilitating refugee employment''
(section 412(c)(2)(B)(i)), funds awarded under this program are
intended to help fulfill the Congressional intent that ``employable
refugees should be placed on jobs as soon as possible after their
arrival in the United States'' (section 412(a)(1)(B)(i) of the INA).
Therefore, in accordance with 45 CFR 400.313, targeted assistance funds
must be used primarily for employability services designed to enable
refugees to obtain jobs with less than one year's participation in the
targeted assistance program in order to achieve economic self-
sufficiency as soon as possible. Targeted assistance services may
continue to be provided after a refugee has entered a job to help the
refugee retain employment or move to a better job. Targeted assistance
funds may not be used for long-term training programs such as
vocational training that last for more than a year or educational
programs that are not intended to lead to employment within a year.
In accordance with Sec. 400.317, if targeted assistance funds are
used for the provision of English language training, such training must
be provided in a concurrent, rather than sequential, time period with
employment or with other employment-related activities.
A portion of a local area's allocation may be used for services
which are not directed toward the achievement of a specific employment
objective in less than one year but which are essential to the
adjustment of refugees in the community, provided such needs are
clearly demonstrated and such use is approved by the State. Allowable
services include those listed under Sec. 400.316.
Reflecting section 412(a)(1)(A)(iv) of the INA, States must
``insure that women have the same opportunities as men to participate
in training and instruction.'' In addition, in accordance with
Sec. 400.317, services must be provided to the maximum extent feasible
in a manner that includes the use of bilingual/bicultural women on
service agency staffs to ensure adequate service access by refugee
women. The Director also strongly encourages the inclusion of refugee
women in management and board positions in agencies that serve
refugees. In order to facilitate refugee self-support, the Director
also expects States to implement strategies which address
simultaneously the employment potential of both male and female wage
earners in a family unit. States and counties are expected to make
every effort to assure availability of day care services for children
in order to allow women with children the opportunity to participate in
employment services or to accept or retain employment. To accomplish
this, day care may be treated as a priority employment-related service
under the targeted assistance program. Refugees who are participating
in TAP-funded or social services-funded employment services or have
accepted employment are eligible for day care services for children.
For an employed refugee, TAP-funded day care should be limited to one
year after the refugee becomes employed. States and counties, however,
are expected to use day care funding from other publicly funded
mainstream programs as a prior resource and are encouraged to work with
service providers to assure maximum access to other publicly funded
resources for day care.
In accordance with Sec. 400.317, targeted assistance services must
be provided in a manner that is culturally and linguistically
compatible with a refugee's language and cultural background, to the
maximum extent feasible. In light of the increasingly diverse
population of refugees who are resettling in this country, refugee
service agencies will need to develop practical ways of providing
culturally and linguistically appropriate services to a changing ethnic
population. Services funded under this notice must be refugee-specific
services which are designed specifically to meet refugee needs and are
in keeping with the rules and objectives of the refugee program.
Vocational or job-skills training, on-the-job training, or English
language training, however, need not be refugee-specific.
When planning targeted assistance services, States must take into
account the reception and placement (R & P) services provided by local
resettlement agencies in order to utilize these resources in the
overall program design and to ensure the provision of seamless,
coordinated services to refugees that are not duplicative. See
Sec. 400.156(b).
ORR strongly encourages States and counties when contracting for
targeted assistance services, including employment services, to give
consideration to the special strengths of mutual assistance
associations (MAAs), whenever contract bidders are otherwise equally
qualified, provided that the MAA has the capability to deliver services
in a manner that is culturally and linguistically compatible with the
background of the target population to be served. ORR also strongly
encourages MAAs to ensure that their management and board composition
reflect the major target populations to be served.
ORR defines MAAs as organizations with the following
qualifications:
a. The organization is legally incorporated as a nonprofit
organization; and
b. Not less than 51% of the composition of the Board of Directors
or governing board of the mutual assistance association is comprised of
refugees or former refugees, including both refugee men and women.
Finally, in order to provide culturally and linguistically
compatible services in as cost-efficient a manner as possible in a time
of limited resources, ORR strongly encourages States and counties to
promote and give special consideration to the provision of services
through coalitions of refugee service organizations, such as coalitions
of MAAs, voluntary resettlement agencies, or a variety of service
providers. ORR believes it is essential for refugee-serving
organizations to form close partnerships in the provision of services
to refugees in order to be able to respond adequately to a changing
refugee picture. Coalition-building and consolidation of providers is
particularly important in communities with multiple service providers
in order to ensure better coordination of services and maximum use of
funding for services by minimizing the funds used for multiple
administrative overhead costs.
The award of funds to States under this notice will be contingent
upon the completeness of a State's application as described in section
IX, below.
IV. [Reserved for Discussion of Comments in the Final Notice]
V. Eligible Grantees
Eligible grantees are those agencies of State governments that are
responsible for the refugee program under 45 CFR 400.5 in States
containing counties which qualify for FY 1997 targeted assistance
awards.
[[Page 15523]]
The use of targeted assistance funds for services to Cuban and
Haitian entrants is limited to States which have an approved State plan
under the Cuban/Haitian Entrant Program (CHEP).
The State agency will submit a single application on behalf of all
county governments of the qualified counties in that State. Subsequent
to the approval of the State's application by ORR, local targeted
assistance plans will be developed by the county government or other
designated entity and submitted to the State.
A State with more than one qualified county is permitted, but not
required, to determine the allocation amount for each qualified county
within the State. However, if a State chooses to determine county
allocations differently from those set forth in this notice, in
accordance with Sec. 400.319, the FY 1997 allocations proposed by the
State must be based on the State's population of refugees who arrived
in the U.S. during the most recent 5-year period. A State may use
welfare data as an additional factor in the allocation of its targeted
assistance funds if it so chooses; however, a State may not assign a
greater weight to welfare data than it has assigned to population data
in its allocation formula. In addition, if a State chooses to allocate
its FY 1997 targeted assistance funds in a manner different from the
formula set forth in this notice, the FY 1997 allocations and
methodology proposed by the State must be included in the State's
application for ORR review and approval.
Applications submitted in response to the final notice are not
subject to review by State and areawide clearinghouses under Executive
Order 12372, ``Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs.''
VI. Qualification and Allocation
A. Qualified Counties
In the FY 1996 targeted assistance final notice (61 FR 36739 [July
12, 1996]), the ORR Director made clear her intention to determine the
qualification of counties for targeted assistance funds once every
three years, beginning in FY 1996. Therefore, it is ORR's intent that
the 39 counties listed as qualified for TAP funding in FY 1996 will
remain qualified for TAP funding for FY 1997. We do not plan to
consider the eligibility of additional counties for FY 1997, with one
exception. Last year, one county which did not rank within the top 39
counties complained that its 5-year arrival population as reported by
ORR underrepresented the actual number of refugee and entrant arrivals
who were resettled in that county. The county stated that it was not
credited with a number of initial resettlements to the county because
the destination listed for these refugees/entrants was the address of
the voluntary agency responsible for resettlement which is located in a
neighboring county. ORR's response was if the county was able to
provide the documentation to prove its case, and if the additional
numbers enabled the county to rank within the top 39 counties, ORR
would make the adjustment in the FY 1997 allocations notice.
Therefore, if any county, which is not one of the 39 qualified
targeted assistance counties, believes that its 5-year arrival
population from FY 1991-FY 1995 (the period used in the final FY 1996
TAP notice) was undercounted by ORR last year for the reason stated
above and wishes to have its rank reconsidered, the county must provide
the following evidence: The county must submit to ORR a letter signed
by the local voluntary agency that resettled refugees in the county
that attests to the fact that the refugees/entrants listed in an
attachment to the letter were resettled as initial placements during
the 5-year period from FY 1991-FY 1995 in the county making the claim.
Documentation must include the name, alien number, date of birth, and
date of arrival in the U.S. for each refugee/entrant claimed.
Failure to submit the required documentation to ORR no later than
the end of the 30-day public comment period will result in forfeiture
of consideration.
If the county's rank on refugee arrivals for the 5-year period from
FY 1991-FY 1995, based on the adjusted 5-year arrival population total
for the county, and its rank on refugee concentration in relation to
the county general population adds to a summed rank that places the
county within the top 39 counties for the FY 1996 notice, ORR will add
the county to the qualified county list for FY 1997 and will calculate
the county's allocation for FY 1997 on the basis of its 5-year arrival
population for the period from FY 1992-FY 1996. None of the 39 original
counties that qualified last year will be dropped.
B. Allocation Formula
Of the funds available for FY 1997 for targeted assistance,
$25,871,300 is allocated by formula to States for qualified counties
based on the initial placements of refugees, Amerasians, and entrants
in these counties during the 5-year period from FY 1992 through FY 1996
(October 1, 1991-September 30, 1996).
With regard to Havana parolees, in the absence of reliable data on
this population, we are crediting 7,288 Havana parolees who arrived in
FY 1996 to qualified targeted assistance counties based on the
counties' proportion of the 5-year entrant arrival population. For FY
1995, Florida's Havana parolees for each qualified county are based on
actual data submitted by the State of Florida last year, while Havana
parolees credited to counties in other States were prorated based on
the counties' proportion of the 5-year entrant population in the U.S.
The proposed allocations in this notice reflect these additional
parolee numbers.
VII. Allocations
Table 1 lists the qualified counties, the number of refugee/entrant
arrivals in those counties during the 5-year period from October 1,
1991--September 30, 1996, the prorated number of Havana parolees
credited to each county based on the county's proportion of the 5-year
entrant population in the U.S., the sum of the first three columns, and
the proposed amount of each county's allocation based on its 5-year
total population.
Table 2 provides proposed State totals for targeted assistance
allocations.
Table 1.--Proposed Targeted Assistance Allocations by County: FY 1997
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Total Total FY 1997
County Refugees Entrants Havana arrivals: FY proposed
parolees\1\ 1992-1996 allocation
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Alameda County, CA.............. 4,941 21 6 4,968 $300,153
Fresno County, CA............... 5,841 2 0 5,843 353,018
Los Angeles County, CA.......... 25,803 689 217 26,709 1,613,686
Merced County, CA............... 1,539 0 0 1,539 92,982
Orange County, CA............... 22,525 38 12 22575 1,363,921
[[Page 15524]]
Sacramento County, CA........... 12,293 5 2 12,300 743,133
San Diego County, CA............ 12,428 516 148 13,092 790,984
SAN FRANCISCO AREA, CA.......... 11077 195 64 11336 684,891
San Joaquin County CA........... 2,433 7 2 2,442 147,539
Santa Clara County, CA.......... 16,305 50 10 16,365 988,729
Denver County, CO............... 3,479 3 1 3,483 210,434
District of Columbia, DC........ 4,076 17 5 4,098 247,590
Dade County, FL................. 10,617 38,254 13,1845 62,056 3,749,257
Duval County, GL................ 3,053 28 17 3,098 187,173
Palm Beach County, FL........... 768 2,943 592 4,303 259,976
DeKalb County, GA............... 5,815 23 7 5,845 353,139
Fulton County, GA............... 6,300 238 67 6,605 399,056
CHICAGO AREA, IL................ 18,048 502 137 18687 1,129,019
Polk County, IA................. 2,940 1 0 2,941 177,687
Baltimore City, MD.............. 3,387 3 0 3,390 204,815
Suffolk County, MA.............. 5,791 289 95 6,175 373,077
Oakland County, MI.............. 3,986 8 3 3,997 241,488
Hennepin County, MN............. 5,796 3 0 5,799 350,360
Ramsey County, MN............... 4,538 10 4 4,552 275,020
St. Louis City, MO.............. 5,891 2 0 5,893 356,039
Lancaster County, NE............ 2,433 34 6 2,473 149,412
Bernalillo County, NM........... 1,574 1,292 382 3,248 196,235
Broome County, NY............... 1,718 28 9 1,755 106,032
Monroe County, NY............... 3,018 516 153 3,687 222,759
NEW YORK CITY AREA, NY.......... 84,377 1,218 376 85,971 5,194,138
Oneida County, NY............... 2,635 1 0 2,636 159,260
PORTLAND AREA, OR............... 11,034 580 149 11,763 710,689
Philadelphia County, PA......... 8,100 78 24 8,202 495,543
Davidson County, TN............. 3,187 54 8 3,249 196,296
DALLAS AREA, TX................. 12,123 612 177 12,912 780,108
Harris County, TX............... 10,559 176 45 10,780 651,299
FAIRFAX AREA, VA................ 4,672 8 2 4,682 282,874
Richmond City, VA............... 1,914 109 31 2,054 124,097
SEATTLE AREA, WA................ 16,650 48 9 16,707 1,009,392
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Total..................... 363,664 48,601 15,945 428,210 25,871,300
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\1\ Includes Havana Parolees (HP's) for FY 1995 and FY 1996.
For FY 1995, HP arrivals to the qualifying Florida counties (7609) were based on actual data while HP arrivals
to the non-Florida qualifying counties (1048) were prorated based on the counties' proportion of the five year
entrant population in the U.S.
For FY 1996, 7288 HP's were prorated to the qualifying counties based on the counties' proportion of the five
year entrant population in the U.S.
Table 2--Proposed Targeted Assistance Allocations by State: FY 1997
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Total FY 1997
State proposed
allocation
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California.............................................. $7,079,036
Colorado................................................ 210,434
District of Col......................................... 247,590
Florida................................................. 4,196,406
Georgia................................................. 752,195
Illinois................................................ 1,129,019
Iowa.................................................... 177,687
Maryland................................................ 204,815
Massachusetts........................................... 373,077
Michigan................................................ 241,488
Minnesota............................................... 625,380
Missouri................................................ 356,039
Nebraska................................................ 149,412
New Mexico.............................................. 196,235
New York................................................ 5,682,189
Oregon.................................................. 710,689
Pennsylvania............................................ 495,543
Tennessee............................................... 196,296
Texas................................................... 1,431,407
Virginia................................................ 406,971
Washington.............................................. 1,009,392
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[[Page 15525]]
Total............................................... 25,871,300
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VIII. Application and Implementation Process
Under the FY 1997 targeted assistance program, States may apply for
and receive grant awards on behalf of qualified counties in the State.
A single allocation will be made to each State by ORR on the basis of
an approved State application. The State agency will, in turn, receive,
review, and determine the acceptability of individual county targeted
assistance plans.
Pursuant to Sec. 400.210(b), FY 1997 targeted assistance funds must
be obligated by the State agency no later than one year after the end
of the Federal fiscal year in which the Department awarded the grant.
Funds must be liquidated within two years after the end of the Federal
fiscal year in which the Department awarded the grant. A State's final
financial report on targeted assistance expenditures must be received
no later than two years after the end of the Federal fiscal year in
which the Department awarded the grant. If final reports are not
received on time, the Department will deobligate any unexpended funds,
including any unliquidated obligations, on the basis of a State's last
filed report.
The requirements regarding the discretionary portions of the
targeted assistance program will be addressed separately in the grant
announcements for those funds. Applications for these funds are
therefore not subject to provisions contained in this notice but to
other requirements which will be conveyed separately.
IX. Application Requirements
The proposed State application requirements for grants for the FY
1997 targeted assistance formula allocation are as follows:
States that are currently operating under approved management plans
for their FY 1996 targeted assistance program and wish to continue to
do so for their FY 1997 grants may provide the following in lieu of
resubmitting the full currently approved plan:
The State's application for FY 1997 funding shall provide:
A. Assurance that the State's current management plan for the
administration of the targeted assistance program, as approved by ORR,
will continue to be in full force and effect for the FY 1997 targeted
assistance program, subject to any additional assurances or revisions
required by this notice which are not reflected in the current plan.
Any proposed modifications to the approved plan will be identified in
the application and are subject to ORR review and approval. Any
proposed changes must address and reference all appropriate portions of
the FY 1996 application content requirements to ensure complete
incorporation in the State's management plan.
B. Assurance that targeted assistance funds will be used in
accordance with the requirements in 45 CFR Part 400.
C. Assurance that targeted assistance funds will be used primarily
for the provision of services which are designed to enable refugees to
obtain jobs with less than one year's participation in the targeted
assistance program. States must indicate what percentage of FY 1997
targeted assistance formula allocation funds that are used for services
will be allocated for employment services.
D. Assurance that targeted assistance funds will not be used to
offset funding otherwise available to counties or local jurisdictions
from the State agency in its administration of other programs, e.g.
social services, cash and medical assistance, etc.
E. The amount of funds to be awarded to the targeted county or
counties. If a State with more than one qualifying targeted assistance
county chooses to allocate its targeted assistance funds differently
from the formula allocation for counties presented in the ORR targeted
assistance notice in a fiscal year, its allocations must be based on
the State's population of refugees who arrived in the U.S. during the
most recent 5-year period. A State may use welfare data as an
additional factor in the allocation of targeted assistance funds if it
so chooses; however, a State may not assign a greater weight to welfare
data than it has assigned to population data in its allocation formula.
The application must provide a description of, and supporting data for,
the State's proposed allocation plan, the data to be used, and the
proposed allocation for each county.
F. Assurance that local administrative budgets will not exceed 15%
of the local allocation. Targeted assistance grants are cost-based
awards. Neither a State nor a county is entitled to a certain amount
for administrative costs. Rather, administrative cost requests should
be based on projections of actual needs. States and counties are
strongly encouraged to limit administrative costs to the extent
possible to maximize available funding for services to clients.
G. All applicants must establish targeted assistance proposed
performance goals for each of the 6 ORR performance outcome measures
for each targeted assistance county's proposed service contract(s) or
sub-grants for the next contracting cycle. Proposed performance goals
must be included in the application for each performance measure. The 6
ORR performance measures are: entered employments, cash assistance
reductions due to employment, cash assistance terminations due to
employment, 90-day employment retentions, average wage at placement,
and job placements with available health benefits. Targeted assistance
program activity and progress achieved toward meeting performance
outcome goals are to be reported quarterly on the ORR-6, the
``Quarterly Performance Report.''
States which are currently grantees for targeted assistance funds
should base projected annual outcome goals on the past year's
performance. Proposed targeted assistance outcome goals should reflect
improvement over past performance and strive for continuous improvement
during the project period from one year to another.
H. A line item budget and justification for State administrative
costs limited to a maximum of 5% of the total award to the State. Each
total budget period funding amount requested must be necessary,
reasonable, and allocable to the project. States that administer the
program locally in lieu of the county, through a mutual agreement with
the qualifying county, may add up to, but not exceed, 10% of the
county's TAP allocation to the State's administrative budget.
States administering the program locally: States that have
administered the program locally or provide direct service to the
refugee population (with the concurrence of the county) must submit a
program summary to ORR for prior review and approval. The
[[Page 15526]]
summary must include a description of the proposed services; a
justification for the projected allocation for each component including
relationship of funds allocated to numbers of clients served,
characteristics of clients, duration of training and services, and cost
per placement. In addition, the program component summary must describe
any ancillary services or subcomponents such as day care,
transportation, or language training.
X. Reporting Requirements
States are required to submit quarterly reports on the outcomes of
the targeted assistance program, using Schedule A and Schedule C of the
new ORR-6 Quarterly Performance Report form which was sent to States in
ORR State Letter 95-35 on November 6, 1995.
Dated: March 26, 1997.
Lavinia Limon,
Director, Office of Refugee Resettlement.
[FR Doc. 97-8188 Filed 3-31-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4184-01-P
