Search Type Title Author/Investigator Search Advanced Search

Table of Contents | Previous | Next

Part II: Program Description and Performance Analysis

STRATEGIC GOAL I (con't)

1.2      REFUGEE RESETTLEMENT

Total Program Resources:

Total Program Resources: Request, Full Costs, & Annual Measures ($ in millions)	FY 2003	FY 2004	FY 2005
Budget Request (Program Level)	$481.9	$448.6	$474.2
Estimated Full Cost	$487.3	$454.3	$480.3
Program Goal: Increase employment Incorporates measures: 1.2a-b, and 1.2d-f	$201.7	$188.0	$198.8

* The distribution of full costs to performance measures may not equal the full cost of the performance program area.

ALLOCATION METHODOLOGY EXPLANATION: 41.4% which excludes Preventative Health, funding for Victims of Torture and Trafficking, repatriation, and the Unaccompanied Alien Children program from the calculation of full costs associated with performance measures.

PROGRAM DESCRIPTION AND CONTEXT

The Administration for Children and Families (ACF) provides assistance and services to persons admitted to the United States as refugees, asylees, Cuban or Haitian entrants, and Amerasian immigrants. The major program goals are to provide resources and technical assistance to states and other grantees in order to help refugees achieve economic self-sufficiency and social adjustment within the shortest time possible following their arrival in the United States.

Federal resettlement assistance to refugees is provided primarily through a state-administered refugee resettlement program. States provide transitional cash and medical assistance and social services to refugees, and maintain legal responsibility for the care of unaccompanied refugee children.

The Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) strives to help refugees, Cuban/Haitian entrants, asylees, and other special populations (as outlined in the ORR regulations) achieve economic and social self-sufficiency in the United States in the shortest time possible. The definition of economic self-sufficiency--an integral component of both the Matching Grant Program and the state-administered program of refugee resettlement--is earnings/income for the total family at a level that enables a family unit to support itself without receipt of cash assistance.

ORR funding supports cash and medical assistance programs, English language training, employment preparation and job placement, skills training, social adjustment, and other services to help refugees build new lives in the United States. As codified in the Refugee Act of 1980, Pub.L.96-212, this program strengthened the United States’ historic policy of aiding individuals fleeing persecution in their homeland.

ORR provides funding for a broad range of social services to refugees, both through states and through direct service grants, to help refugees obtain employment and achieve economic self-sufficiency and social adjustment as quickly as possible. After deducting earmarked set-asides mandated by Congress, ORR allocates 85 percent of the social service funds annually on a formula basis.

Foreign policy decisions and crises affect the size and nature of the domestic Refugee Resettlement Program. Its ability to quickly resettle new arrivals depends not only on local job markets but also on the rate and number of refugee arrivals, refugee special needs, educational levels, and English proficiency.

In June of FY 2000, ORR changed its policy regarding the starting date for eligibility of asylees for ORR benefits and services from the date of entry into the U.S. to the date of the final grant of asylum. In FY 2002, this policy change added approximately 24,000 asylees to the ORR caseload eligible to receive cash and services. Adding the asylees to the refugee arrivals (27,114), entrant arrivals (16,685), and victims of trafficking (99) increased our total caseload to 67,898.

In FY 2003, the asylee policy change resulted in the addition of approximately 24,000 asylees to the estimated ORR caseload eligible to receive cash and services. Adding the asylees to the FY 2003 refugee arrival ceiling (70,000) and entrant arrivals (20,000) increased our estimated FY 2003 caseload to 114,000. In addition, a new law passed in October 2000, the Trafficking Victims Protection Act (Pub. L. 106-386), made aliens who are victims of a severe form of trafficking, eligible for benefits and services under any Federally funded or administered programs to the same extent as refugees. For estimation purposes, ORR added 1,000 victims of a severe form of trafficking to the estimated FY 2003 caseload for a total estimated caseload of 115,000.

Since FY 1995 the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) has been working in partnership with states to implement the requirements of the Government Performance and Results Act into our state-administered program. Our joint efforts have moved the state-administered program to a focus on results through the process of setting and reporting annual outcome goals.

Each year states are asked to set goals that represent continuous improvement over the previous year's performance. States that reach a high employment and self-sufficiency rate of 85 percent among employable refugees may establish goals to maintain that level of outcome instead of aiming for continued improvement. While states are encouraged to strive for continuous improvement, goal setting continues to be a negotiation process. ORR staff negotiate with partners to arrive at mutually acceptable goals and provide program monitoring, training, and technical assistance where needed.

The Matching Grant program provides an alternative approach to the state-administered resettlement assistance. It provides voluntary agencies the opportunity to use focused intensive employment services, financial incentives, and the flexibility to experiment with creative solutions to the special employment challenges of refugees in order to achieve early placements. The program’s goal is to help refugees attain self-sufficiency within four months after arrival, without access to public cash assistance. This program provides comprehensive case management during enrollment and is targeted to families motivated to gain employment and with at least one member deemed employable. Both of these features contribute to the high success rate for past year performances in this program.

ORR conducts on-site and desk monitoring of selected states and other grantees to help them achieve improved client employment and self-sufficiency outcomes. ORR targets states that have large refugee populations and that receive significant ACF refugee program funding for monitoring as well as those states whose reports indicate performance issues. In monitoring, ORR assists states and grantees to identify strategies to improve outcomes on ORR performance measures and provides technical assistance on implementing program improvements. ORR also shares best practices with states and grantees through monitoring, conferences, and ongoing correspondences.

PROGRAM PERFORMANCE ANALYSIS

Program Performance Table

Performance Measures	Targets	Actual Performance	Reference (Relevant strategic goal in the HHS Strategic Plan)
1.2a. Increase the percent of refugees entering employment through ACF-funded refugee employment services by at least 3 percent of the prior year's actual percentage outcome using the ratio of entered employment to the number of refugees receiving services. [O] (Former Measure: Increase the percent of refugees entering employment through ACF-funded refugee employment services by at least 3 percentage points annually from prior year.)	FY 05: increase 3% FY 04: increase 3% FY 03: 55.05% FY 02: 52.03% FY 01: 56,885 FY 00: 54,176 FY 99: 51,597	FY 05: FY 04: FY 03: 4/04** FY 02: 53.45% FY 01: 45,893(50.51%) FY 00: 48,820 FY 99: 50,208 FY 98: 52,298 FY 97: 46,800	HHS 6.1
1.2b. Increase the percent of entered employment with health benefits available as a subset of full-time job placements by 3 percent of the prior year's actual percentage outcome. [O] (Former Measure: Increase the percent of entered employment with health benefits available as a subset of full-time job placements by 3 percentage points annually from the prior year.)	FY 05: increase 3% FY 04: increase 3% FY 03: 65.51% FY 02: 71.00% FY 01: 30,613 FY 00: 29,156 FY 99: 27,767	FY 05: FY 04: FY 03: 4/04** FY 02: 63.60% FY 01: 27,270(68.93%) FY 00: 27,080 FY 99: 28,425 FY 98: 27,124 FY 97: 25,186	HHS 3.1
1.2c. Increase the percent of refugee cash assistance cases closed due to employment by at least 3 percent annually as a subset of all entered employment from the prior year. (Former Measure: Increase the number of refugee cash assistance cases closed due to employment by at least 5 percent annually as a subset of all entered employment from the prior year's actual performance.)	FY 03: Dropped FY 02: 39% FY 01: 18,169 FY 00: 17,304 FY 99: 16,480	FY 02: 27% FY 01: 14,223 FY 00: 15,539 FY 99: 16,445
1.2d. Increase the percent of 90- day job retention as a subset of all entered employment by at least 3 percent of the prior year's actual percentage outcome. [O] (Former Measure: Increase the percent of 90-day job retention as a subset of all entered employment by at least 3 percentage points annually from the prior year.)	FY 05: increase 3% FY 04: increase 3% FY 03: 79.52% FY 02: 73.03% FY 01: 41,824 FY 00: 39,833 FY 99: 37,936	FY 05: FY 04: FY 03: 4/04** FY 02: 77.20% FY 01: 31,137 (70.90%) FY 00: 33,626 FY 99: 36,055 FY 98: 38,040 FY 97: 34,409	HHS 6.1
1.2e. Increase the percent of refugees who enter employment through the Matching Grant (MG) program as a subset of all MG employable adults by at least 3 percent of the prior year's actual percentage outcome.[O]* (Former Measure: Increase the number of refugees who enter employment through the Matching Grant (MG) program as a subset of all MG employable adults by at least 5% annually from the prior year's actual performance.)	CY 05: increase 3% CY 04: increase 3% CY 03: 72.1% CY 02: 14,576 (78%) CY 01: 9,504 CY 00: 9,051 CY 99: 8,620	CY 05: CY 04: CY 03: 7/04** CY 02: 70% CY 01: 13,882 CY 00: 10,931 CY 99: 9,713 CY 98: 8,049 CY 97: 7,819	HHS 6.1
1.2f. Increase the percent of refugee families (cases) that are self-sufficient (not dependent on any cash assistance) within the first 4 months after arrival by at least 3 percent of the prior year's actual percentage outcome.[O]* (Former Measure: Increase the number of refugee families (cases) that are self-sufficient (not dependent on any cash assistance) within the first 4 months after arrival by at least 4% annually from the prior year’s actual performance.)	CY 05: increase 3% CY 04: increase 3% CY 03: 74.16% CY 02: 10,860 (81%) CY 01: 6,176 CY 00: 5,938 CY 99: 5,710	CY 05: CY 04: CY 03: 7/04** CY 02: 72% CY 01: 10,442 CY 00: 10,597 CY 99: 6,497 CY 98: 5,194 CY 97: 5,279	HHS 6.1
1.2g. For newly arrived refugees receiving TANF or other forms of cash assistance, shorten the length of time it takes a refugee to obtain unsubsidized employment following arrival in the U.S. (Developmental) [E]	FY 05: TBD		HHS 6.1 EFFICIENCY MEASURE
% of Full Cost FY 2003: 41.4% (Measures 1.2a-f) FY 2004: 41.4% (Measures 1.2a ,b, d-f) FY 2005: 41.4% (Measures 1.2a, b, d-f) OTHER: 58.6% (includes preventive Health, Victims of Torture and Trafficking, Unaccompanied Alien Children Program, Repatriation)
*Due to the low refugee arrival, the measures for the Matching Grant program are being changed to more accurately reflect performance. ** FY 2003-2004 Data Availability: Annual unduplicated FY 2003 data are due from states 45 days after end of FY, circa November 15. Final state data will be available in April 204 and Final Matching grant data will be available in July 2004.
Total Funding (dollars in millions) See detailed Budget Linkage Table in Appendix A-12 for line items included in funding totals.	FY 05: $474.2 FY 04: $448.6 FY 03: $481.9 FY 02: $450.2 FY 01: $433.1 FY 00: $426.2 FY 99: $480.9
LONG-TERM STRATEGIC GOAL: By 2012, grantees will achieve an 85% entered employment rate (EER).

Program Partnerships

ACF refugee resettlement policies and activities are coordinated with the U.S. Department of State, Department of Justice, Department of Homeland Security’s Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Bureau of Immigration and Citizenship Services, the Social Security Administration, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food and Consumer Service, community action agencies, as well as with TANF, Medicaid, and other programs within DHHS.

Summary of Program Performance

The Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) convened a workgroup comprised of State Refugee Coordinators and ORR staff in November 1994 to refine its performance measures and to establish annual outcome goals. The workgroup selected performance measures that are results-oriented, quantifiable, based on reliable data, stated in terms of positive change in social or economic conditions for refugees using services, and that measure program effectiveness.

The workgroup also recommended that states be required to establish annual outcome targets aimed at continuous improvement of performance for each of the selected program measures. All performance measures are aimed at increasing refugee early employment and self-sufficiency. The workgroup recommended the following six program measures as most representative and manageable for reporting purposes. Four of the six measures have been incorporated into the ACF annual performance plan.

Entered employment -- entered employment (job placements) is defined as the entry of an active participant in employment services into unsubsidized employment for at least one day during any quarter of the Federal fiscal year.

Cash assistance terminations due to earnings -- a cash assistance termination (grant termination) is defined as the closing of a cash assistance case due to earned income in an amount that is predicted to exceed the state’s payment standard for the case based on family size, thereby rendering the case ineligible for cash assistance.

Cash assistance reductions due to earnings -- a cash assistance reduction (grant reduction) is defined as a reduction in the amount of cash assistance that a case receives as a result of earned income from employment (this outcome measure is not included in this plan).

Average hourly wage at placement -- average hourly wage at placement (employment entry) is calculated as the sum of the hourly wages for the unduplicated number of full-time placements in employment during the fiscal year divided by the total unduplicated number of individuals placed in full-time employment (this outcome measure is not included in this plan).

Ninety-day employment retention -- this is a measure of continued participation in the labor market, not retention of a specific job. Employed means working for wages on the ninetieth day from placement at any unsubsidized job. Where there have been multiple placements for the same individual within the same Federal fiscal year, the date of the first employment entry is the start date for calculating the 90-day follow-up. An individual who is on strike on the ninetieth day is considered employed. An individual who has been laid off and does not anticipate returning to the same employment within 30 days is considered unemployed, unless the individual has obtained other employment.

Entered employment with health benefits available -- entered employment with health benefits available reflects the availability of health benefits (either at placement, or at any time within 6 months of placement) for those individuals who entered full-time employment. This is not a measure of how many individuals elect to enroll in health benefits, but rather how many jobs offer this option. Benefits should be considered available if self-only coverage is available to the employee, even if coverage is not extended to the employee’s family members. Benefits are considered available without regard to whether the employee must contribute to the premium or whether the employee must wait for coverage.

Each year, states are asked to set goals that represent continuous improvement over the previous year's performance. States that reach a high employment and self-sufficiency rate of 85 percent among employable refugees may establish goals to maintain that level of outcome instead of aiming for continued improvement. While states are encouraged to strive for continuous improvement, goal setting continues to be a negotiation process. ORR staff will continue to negotiate the goal setting process with our partners to arrive at mutually acceptable goals and provide program monitoring, training and technical assistance where needed.

FY 2002 performance was affected by a number of significant events. The terrorist attacks in September, 2001 had a serious and immediate impact on the U.S. Refugee Resettlement Program (RRP). After September 2001, the U.S. government suspended refugee arrivals to the U.S. until new security procedures were implemented for overseas screening. The President established the FY 2002 refugee admissions ceiling of 70,000 on November 21, 2001. However, refugee arrivals to the U.S. did not resume again with any regularity until April 2002. As a result of the suspension of refugee arrivals and the slow re-start of overseas refugee processing, refugee and also Cuban/Haitian caseloads in all states and the Matching Grant program during FY 2002 were severely diminished.

Many refugees lost their jobs as a result of the economic downturn in the hospitality industry immediately following the terrorist attacks. These newly unemployed refugees require re-employment, re-training and vocationally specific English language training in order to compete in the post-September 2001 economy. Existing ORR regulations make services available to refugees for their first five years in the U.S. Many of the newly unemployed refugees have been in the U.S. for more than five years. For FY 2002, in order to make employment services available to newly unemployed refugees who have been in the U.S. more than five years, the Director of ORR used his waiver authority to extend services to these refugees. As a result, the ORR caseload for FY 2002 was composed largely of previously served refugees, rather than new arrivals.

There are also a number of refugees, formerly victims of civil war and ethnic persecution, who were re-traumatized by the terrorist acts and were in need of mental health services prior to seeking re-employment. For example, a large number of refugees were employed in the North Tower of the World Trade Center in Executive Dining Rooms and other restaurants. Many of the survivors are too traumatized to report to their jobs and are receiving intensive counseling. Others are refusing to accept jobs in high rise buildings in Manhattan and are requesting jobs in small businesses. Many of these small business are unable to support additional hires until the economy improves.

The caseload consists of the number of refugees with whom a service provider had regular and direct involvement during the fiscal year in planned employment-related activities for the purpose of assisting the refugee to find and/or retain employment. In FY 2002, the actual caseload was 80,845 compared to 90,867 in FY 2001. However, 20 states increased their caseload in FY 2002 compared to FY 2001.

Data Issues: Data are submitted quarterly by all states participating in the state-administered program via the quarterly performance report (Form ORR-6). Data for the Matching Grant are submitted to ACF three times per year on the Matching Grant Progress Report form. Baseline data for all measures in the state-administered program were derived from FY 2002 annual unduplicated outcome data as reported on the annual Outcome Goal Plans through FY 2002. As of FY 2003, targets will be set based on the previous year’s actual performance. Baseline data for the Matching Grant program are derived from the Calendar Year 2002 outcomes. Matching Grant unduplicated annual performance data are submitted to ACF in February of each year.

Some clients who request employment assistance receive services and, in the midst of service provision, find a job "on their own" but are unavailable or unwilling to share their employment information. Discrepant data are being reported for some cases because some states are struggling to identify numbers of clients being served. Correcting discrepancies in data is a priority. For employable clients receiving cash assistance, sometimes the assistance is reduced as a result of employment instead of terminated. In some states, some refugee populations served with ORR funding are hard to place and often need extensive longer-term assistance to find a job.

Desk monitoring and tracking of quarterly performance report data occur quarterly in the state-administered program and 3 times per year in the Matching Grant program. Data are validated by periodic desk and on-site monitoring, in which refugee cases are randomly selected and reviewed. During on-site monitoring, outcomes reported by service providers are verified with both employers and refugees to ensure accurate reporting of job placements, wages, and retentions. In addition, states and grantees conduct regular monitoring of ORR-funded contracts and grants.

Measure by Measure Presentation of Performance

LONG-TERM STRATEGIC GOAL: By 2012, grantees will achieve an 85 percent entered employment rate (EER). States with an EER less than 50 percent will be expected to achieve an annual increase of at least 5 percent of the prior year’s actual percentage outcome. States with an EER greater than 50 percent will be expected to achieve an annual increase of at least 3 percent of the prior year’s performance. Average national EER’s will be calculated a) for all states, b) for all except the 2 states with the largest caseloads, c) and for each of the 2 cohorts listed above. ORR expects to establish performance objectives for each of these categories. Actual progress achieved toward long-term goals has not been measured as of this date because ORR must consult with the states prior to implementation.

FY 2004 –2005 targets increases for the state-administered and the Matching Grant programs are based on a baseline year of 2002 annual percentage actual outcomes achieved. Shortfalls have occurred in past years due to a downturn in the economy, the temporary halt of refugee admissions following the terrorist attacks of September, 2001, and subsequent additional refugee security clearances required overseas prior to travel to the U.S. as a result of the attacks.

FY 2002 Performance in the State-Administered Program:

Starting in FY 2003, performance goals were calculated as percentage increases of the prior year’s actual percentage outcome as opposed to raw numbers. The reason for the change was to allow for fluctuations in the caseload since states base their employment goals on projected caseloads.

ORR tracked state and county performance throughout the year. The FY 2002 performance was as follows:

FY 2004-2005 Plan
1.2a.	Increase the percent of refugees entering employment through ACF-funded refugee employment services by at least 3 percent of the prior year’s actual percentage outcome (Modified).
FY 2003 Plan
1.2a	Increase the percent of refugees entering employment through ACF-funded refugee employment services by at least three percent annually from prior year (Modified). Data Source: ORR 6

In FY 2002, the entered employment target was 52.03 percent of the caseload. In FY 2002, 53.45 percent of the caseload became employed (a 1.42 percentage point increase compared to the target set for FY 2002 and a 2.94 percentage point increase compared to FY 2001 performance). In FY 2002, 19 states exceeded the FY 2001 actual number of clients they served. In FY 2002, 24 states improved their rate of employment compared to FY 2001.

Some clients, who request employment assistance, receive services and in the midst of service provision, find a job "on their own" but cannot be located or are unwilling to share their employment information. Discrepant data are being reported for some cases because some states are struggling to identify numbers of clients being served. Correcting discrepancies in data is a priority. For employable clients receiving cash assistance, sometimes the assistance is reduced as a result of employment instead of terminated. In some states, some refugee populations served with ORR funding are hard to place and often need extensive longer-term assistance to find a job.

The economic downturn has affected the job placement activity. Some employers became more reluctant to hire refugees without basic English skills. Moreover, following the terrorist attacks of September 2001, new security measures have caused delays for refugees in applying for and receiving a social security card, which is required for employment. In many states, new laws regarding issuance of state photo identification cards have adversely impacted refugees’ ability to obtain a photo identification card required by the Social Security Administration. Some Cuban Entrants and asylees experienced delays with issuance of the Employment Authorization Document (EAD) from INS, which delayed their entry into employment. Entry-level jobs, eliminated in the downsizing of manufacturing and hospitality sectors, increased the length of time needed for clients to become employed and self-sufficient. Despite the economic downturn and the impacts of the September, 2001 terrorist attacks, the states made remarkable progress in assisting refugees with job placement. In FY 2005, the entered employment goal will be calculated by increasing the prior year’s performance at least 3 percent.

FY 2004-2005 Plan
1.2b.	Increase the percent of entered employments with health benefits available as a subset of full-time job placements by 3 percent of the prior year’s actual percentage outcome (Modified)
FY 2003 Plan
1.2b	Increase the percent of entered employment with health benefits available as a subset of full-time job placements by three percent annually from the prior year. (Modified). Data Source: ORR 6

In FY 2002, the entered employment with health benefits target was 71.00 percent of full-time placements. In FY 2002, 63.60 percent of the full-time placements had health benefits available (a 7.31 percent decrease compared to the target set for FY 2002 and a 5.24 percent decrease compared to FY 2001 performance). In FY 2002, 14 states increased their rate of health benefits available compared to FY 2001. However in some of the larger states like Florida (43 percent) and California (37 percent) lowered the national rate on this measure. In FY 2005 the entered employment with health benefits goal will be calculated by increasing the prior year’s performance by at least 3 percent.

FY 2004-2005 Plan
1.2c.	Increase the percent of refugee cash assistance cases closed due to employment by at least three percent annually as a subset of all entered employment from the prior year. (Modified).
FY 2003 Plan
1.2c	Increase the percent of refugee cash assistance cases closed due to employment by at least three percent annually as a subset of all entered employment from the prior year. (Modified). Data Source: ORR 6

The FY 2002 goal was 14,934. The actual totaled 10,462, a 30 percent decrease from 2001 (14,223). This measure was dropped in FY 2003.

FY 2004-2005 Plan
1.2d.	Increase the percent of 90-day job retentions as a subset of all entered employments by at least 3 percent of the prior year’s actual percentage outcome. (Modified).
FY 2003 Plan
1.2d	Increase the percent of 90 day job retention as a subset of all entered employment by at least three percent annually from the prior year. (Modified). Data Source: ORR 6

In FY 2002, 77.20 percent of refugees who found employment retained their employment for at least ninety days (4.17 percent increase compared to the target set for FY 2002 and 6.3 percent increase compared to FY 2001 performance.). In FY 2002, 32 states achieved an employment retention rate of more than 75 percent. In FY 2002, twenty states improved actual retention rates compared to FY 2001. While some refugees working in airports and other companies affected by September 11 and the sluggish economy were laid off, states did amazingly well helping such a large number of refugees retain their employment for at least 90 days. In FY 2004 the employment retention goal will be calculated by increasing the prior year’s actual percentage outcome by at least 3 percent.

Beginning with FY 1996, states (and California counties) submit an end-of-year report to ORR comparing projected annual targets with actual targets achieved for each of the six measures. States may include a narrative to explain increases or decreases in performance due to local conditions that may have affected performance during the year. This includes labor market conditions or other factors, such as unanticipated reduction in refugee arrivals.

When setting targets for each measure, states are asked to establish targets aimed at improving the previous year’s actual performance. While there are no national performance requirements or formal-comparison of states, each state’s actual annual performance is compared to that state’s projected targets to calculate the level of achievement and to ensure that states strive for continuous improvement in their goal-setting process from year to year. States that reach a high employment and self-sufficiency rate of 85 percent among employable refugees may choose to maintain their target levels rather than increase them. Although there are no monetary punishments or rewards, data on each state’s or county’s annual targets and actual performance for the six measures are published in the Annual Report to Congress. The publicity serves as an incentive for improved performance.

For the FY 1999 - 2001 targets, a common baseline year of 1997 (the earliest year with a complete data set) for both programs serving refugees, replaced the baselines. Baselines for the state-administered program were established using fiscal year data. The Matching Grant program baselines use the calendar year to reflect the matching grant program period. CY2004 and 2005 targets are projected using at least a 3 percent increase of the prior year’s performance for measure 1.2e and l.2f.

In the state-administered program, FY 2004 and FY 2005 targets are calculated using a new baseline year of FY 2002 actual percentages achieved. Because of the extreme shortfalls that have occurred in past years, entered employment targets will be calculated by first determining the number of persons who entered employment divided by the number of persons in the actual unduplicated caseload, to arrive at the percent of persons who entered employment. Annual increases will be projected for the number of refugees entering employment relative to the caseload, expressed as a percentage. This calculation is the basis for setting targets.

CY 2002 Performances in the Matching Grant Voluntary Agency Program

The Matching Grant Program emphasizes family self-sufficiency (independence from cash assistance) and is characterized by a strong emphasis on early employment and intensive services during the first four months after arrival. Both of these features contribute to the high success rate for past year performances in this program. The performance measures are focused on the two most critical program goals: entered employments and the proportion of cases that are self-sufficient at four months after arrival in the U.S.

ACF requires nonprofit agencies participating in the Matching Grant Voluntary Agency Program to set outcome goals each year on five outcome measures negotiated with the Matching Grant agencies. Only the first two outcome measures are included in this annual performance plan and report.

• Entered employments (job placements)
• Self-sufficiency at 120 days (cases and persons)
• Self-sufficiency at 180 days (cases and persons)
• Average hourly wage at placement
• Entered employments with health benefits available

The following two sets of measures track progress for this program:

FY 2004-2005 Plan
1.2e.	Increase the percent of refugees who enter employment through the Matching Grant program as a subset of all MG employable adults by at least 3 percent of the prior year’s actual percentage outcome. (Modified).
FY 2003 Plan
1.2e.	Increase the percent of refugees who enter employment through the Matching Grant (MG) program as a subset of all MG employable adults by at least five percent annually from the prior year’s performance. Data Source: Matching Grants Progress Reports

The CY 2002 goal for this measure was 14,576.

FY 2004-2005 Plan
1.2f.	Increase the percent of MG refugee families (cases) that are self-sufficient (not dependent on any cash assistance) within the first 4 months after arrival by at least 3 percent of the prior year’s performance. (Modified).
FY 2003 Plan
1.2f	Increase the percent of refugee families (cases) that are self-sufficient (not dependent on any cash assistance) within the first four months after arrival by at least four percent annually from the prior year’s performance. Data Source: Matching Grants Progress Reports

The CY 2002 goal for this measure was 10,860.

ORR has implemented a number of strategies aimed at challenging states to improve performance for targets that were not achieved. ORR publishes State and Matching Grant performance results in the Annual Report to Congress; certificates of commendation are presented to states with increased performance at the annual ORR national conference; and ORR staffs negotiate the targets and provide technical assistance and monitoring to the states and Matching Grant Program grantees to achieve mutually acceptable goals. Starting CY 2004, the caseloads for each nonprofit agency participating in the Matching grant program will be based on the ability of the agencies to meet the self-sufficiency goals of the program.

ORR continues to focus on performance and encourages grantees to be ambitious but realistic in setting goals. ORR negotiates annual goals with each of its grantees and stresses continuous improvement. The extent to which ORR can predict future performance is limited, because of the emergency humanitarian nature of the refugee resettlement program. Response to international mass migrations of persecuted persons, such as the asylees and the Somali Bantus from Somalia, places additional demands on our domestic resettlement partners by dramatically increasing the numbers of refugees receiving ORR services. However, our service network continues to place large numbers of newly arrived refugees in jobs each year.

 

 

Table of Contents | Previous | Next