Since 1975, over 2 million refugees have been resettled in the United States. In order to be designated as refugees, people must have a well-founded fear of persecution in their country of origin because of race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion. In order to be admitted to the United States, refugees usually must have a special tie to the U.S., such as: former employment by the U.S. Government or a U.S. company; previous education; close relatives living in the U.S.; and/or persecution specifically related to an individual's association with the U.S. Government. Refugees may also be admitted on humanitarian grounds. In FY l995, about 122,000 refugees, entrants and Amerasians were admitted to the U.S. for resettlement.

The major goal of this program is to provide assistance in order to help refugees achieve economic self-sufficiency and social adjustment within the shortest time possible following their arrival in the U.S. For FY 1998, $423.3 million is available through five different programs: cash and medical assistance, social services, preventive health services, the voluntary agency matching grant program, and the targeted assistance grant program. The Clinton Administration has proposed $415 million for FY 1999.

Cash and medical assistance are available to needy refugees -- who are not eligible for other cash or medical assistance programs, such as Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC), Supplemental Security Income (SSI), or Medicaid -- who arrive in the U.S. with no financial resources. This refugee assistance, if needed, is paid entirely from federal funds and is available only for a limited number of months following arrival in the U.S.

ACF also reimburses states for the costs incurred in the case of refugee children in the U.S. who are identified in countries of first asylum as unaccompanied minors. Depending on their individual needs, refugee children are placed in foster care, group care, independent living, or residential treatment.

To help refugees become self-supporting as quickly as possible, ACF also provides funding to state governments and private, non-profit agencies which are responsible for providing services, such as English language and employment training. Refugees receiving cash and medical assistance are required to be enrolled in employment services and to accept offers of employment.

For FY 1998 and FY 1999, funds were provided to state public health departments for preventive health assessment and treatment services to refugees for protection of the public health against contagious diseases.

This program requires match from private funds or in-kind goods and services. During the refugees' first four months in the U.S., several voluntary resettlement agencies take responsibility for resettling refugees and assisting them to become self-sufficient through private initiatives without recourse to public assistance.

This program targets additional resources to communities facing extraordinary resettlement problems because of a high concentration of refugees and a high use of public assistance by the resident refugee population. Special efforts are directed to those refugees who depend upon public assistance.

From FY 1975 to FY 1995, approximately 2 million refugees have been resettled in the U.S. The five States with the largest refugee arrivals from FY 1975 through FY 1995 were: California (501,609); New York (204,507); Texas (112,279); Florida (113,765); and Washington (73,504).

During the past 12 years (FY 1983 through FY 1995), over 1,264,000 refugees and Amerasian immigrants from Vietnam have settled in the U.S. During this period, Vietnamese refugees and Amerasians have represented 32 percent of total admissions; refugees from the former Soviet Union represented 27 percent; Laotian, about 9 percent; Cambodians, 6 percent; Iran, 3 percent; Poland, 2 percent; Romania, 3 percent; and about 2 percent from Afghanistan, Ethiopia, and Haiti. Refugees from the former Soviet Union have been the largest single country-of-origin group since 1988. Prior to that time, refugees from Vietnam were the largest country-of-origin group.

During FY 1997, 6,613 asylees from Northern Iraq arrived in the United States. These evacuees resettled in 38 states, with Texas receiving the greatest number (817), followed by Tennessee (548), and California (508). The top three counties of initial resettlement included: San Diego, California (439); Davidson, Tennessee (411); and Dallas, Texas (312).

Half of all refugees coming to the U.S. in FY 1995 initially settled in one of three States: California with 17 percent, Florida with 23 percent, and New York with 13 percent. Texas (4 percent), Washington (4 percent), Illinois (3 percent), Georgia (3 percent), Pennsylvania (2 percent), Massachusetts (2 percent), Michigan (2 percent), and New Jersey (2 percent) were also in the top resettlement states.

The Social Security Act authorizes the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to provide temporary assistance to United States citizens and their dependents who are identified by the Department of State as needing to return from a foreign country to the U.S., but do not have resources to do so. This financial assistance is repayable to the U.S. Government.

HHS administers the Repatriation Program. If an American citizen in a foreign country becomes ill, is without funds, or needs to be returned to the U.S. because of a threatening situation in a foreign country, HHS will provide needed services.

For situations involving the evacuation of a group of Americans from a foreign country, HHS may be requested to establish reception sites as well as provide individual assistance. The Administration for Children and Families (ACF) operates both individual and group repatriation programs through agreements with state agencies.

A National Emergency Repatriation Plan is also established by HHS in coordination with other involved federal agencies, voluntary organizations, and states to implement large scale repatriation operations in the event of a national security emergency. Under the National Emergency Repatriation Plan, states carry out the operational responsibility for the reception, temporary care, and onward transportation of those returned to the U.S. States include emergency repatriation in their overall Emergency Operations Plan used to respond to emergency situations.