Goals for State-Federal Action

The Refugee Assistance and Immigrant Integration policy is NCSL's longstanding policy on the state-federal partnership in refugee resettlement and immigrant integration. NCSL’s positions on the broader issues of immigration reform are delineated in its policy on federal immigration reform. 

Refugee Assistance

The National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) supports federal efforts to assist individuals and families forced to flee their native land in fear for their personal safety. We must emphasize, however, that the problem of political refugees is an international one, and consequently demands the cooperative efforts of many countries. The federal policy of accepting refugees, Cuban and Haitian Entrants, and asylees necessitates a federal domestic assistance program to provide for the health and welfare of these individuals when they are settled in the states.

NCSL urges the federal government to fairly and carefully screen prospective refugees and entrants, giving priority status to people fleeing for fear of political persecution, regardless of their country of origin. In cases where the federal government deems it appropriate to provide a special refugee status to groups of individuals, making them eligible for state and local government services, the federal government should be prepared to provide financial assistance to impacted state and local governments.

While refugees and Entrants continue to be accepted, federal support which provides income and medical assistance, social services, education, employment and training and other needed support has continued to be reduced, shifting these costs to state and local governments. The existing federal domestic assistance program appropriately provides 100 percent federal funding for income and medical assistance after settlement. States should be reimbursed for cash and medical assistance during the resettlement period for 36 months as provided by law. States have been willing to accept refugee policy decisions that are made by the federal government; to continue this coordination, the federal government must provide adequate financial assistance to aid refugees in resettlement. The cost of resettlement must not be shifted to the states.

Currently, states only receive reimbursement for eight months of resettlement, instead of the promised 36 months. When admissions exceed the designated ceiling for a single fiscal year, federal funding should correspondingly be increased. The federal government should not raise the admissions ceiling without adequately compensating states for resettlement costs. NCSL is disturbed by the recent trend to admit refugees under "refugee-like" categories that are not eligible for federally reimbursed services. States must then provide different services to family members with different status whose needs may be exactly the same. The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) should improve its process of adjudicating asylum claims in a fair and expeditious manner.

The primary goal of the federal domestic assistance program is to assist refugees and entrants to become independent and self-sufficient members of the community. In areas where large numbers of refugees have settled, refugees often represent a significant proportion of the welfare dependent population. NCSL believes things can be done to improve the track record of the domestic assistance program in meeting the goal of self-sufficiency and independence for refugees.

To start, the federal government should provide English and citizenship instruction as well as job training to refugees, where possible, before they arrive in the United States. This up-front investment should reduce costs in the domestic assistance program and should result in a more successful effort in producing self-sufficient and independent citizens.  NCSL asks the Office of Refugee Resettlement to assist states with efforts to strengthen refugee integration services.  It is also critical for the federal government to support English and citizenship instruction to refugees already in the United States who, according to federal law, will lose access to public benefits unless they become citizens within seven years.

In addition, NCSL strongly urges the federal government to avoid further placements in areas that are already heavily impacted with refugee or Entrant populations, experiencing a shortage of rental housing for low-income households, and experiencing overcrowding in the local school system. State legislators believe that HHS should grant waivers that would allow states to not enforce provisions of federal law and regulations that are barriers to refugee self-sufficiency.  NCSL applauds HHS for its improved responsiveness to states.  We urge HHS to continue to work with states on the issue of secondary migration. 

NCSL urges the federal government to continue the health screening that is currently provided to the refugees, where possible, before they arrive in the United States and to improve follow-up. Follow-up should include, but not be limited to, providing instruction for continued medical care to refugees in the home. Improved outreach and orientation to our health care system is critical especially in light of language and cultural differences.

State and local governments will continue to work closely with refugees, Entrants, their families and support groups to foster independence and self-sufficiency. However, continued federal assistance is very important. Social services are vital to the goal of refugee self sufficiency. NCSL believes that the targeted assistance program should be specifically authorized in the Refugee Act and not left to the discretion of the Office of Refugee Resettlement in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. This targeted assistance program helps highly impacted states and localities provide needed services to refugees and should be adequately funded.

It is imperative for the federal government to work closely with state and local governments in this area. Coordination and consultation with state and local governments is an integral component of a successful placement policy and we urge the federal government to improve its efforts in this area. It is equally important to have the voluntary agencies and organizations representing refugees participate in this coordinated effort.  We urge the U.S. Departments of State, Justice, Health and Human Services, and Homeland Security to increase coordination and create meaningful consultations with the states.  Recently, federal law extended protection to three new categories of individuals: victims of trafficking, victims of domestic violence, and unaccompanied minors.  We urge the federal government to coordinate with state and local government concerning how to better implement federal law.

Immigrant Integration

The Immigration Reform and Control Act of l986 (IRCA) authorized the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlement (SAVE) program. NCSL opposed this mandated program and urges Congress to make SAVE an optional program. In addition, NCSL strongly believes that the federal government should pay for the cost of current and new verification requirements. Unfunded verification requirements for state programs or federal programs that states administer are a cost-shift to states and violate the Unfunded Mandates Act.

States are permitted to certify that prospective employees are authorized to work under the provisions of the law. The law does not provide funding for State Employment Services offices to serve in this capacity. Many states would like to provide this service, but cannot due to state fiscal constraints. NCSL urges the Congress to appropriate funds for this purpose. In addition, we urge the USCIS to work closely with the states on guidelines for program administration and in their anti-discrimination efforts.  NCSL continues to urge Congress to implement an efficient and cost effective employment eligibility program.   Federal databases must be improved as part of that effort.  

As the United States considers reform of the health care system, it is crucial that it take into consideration how health care coverage will be provided to newcomers. Without improved health care access for newcomers, federal, state, and local governments will be unable to provide efficient, inexpensive, and appropriate health care services to these populations. If some newcomer populations are left uncovered, states and localities will be required to provide at least emergency services to these groups because of court orders, despite the fact that states and localities have no authority to limit immigration into their communities. This is an expense that states and localities cannot afford, particularly in light of fiscal constraints on state and local human resource budgets. 

There is much public attention devoted to the role of the federal immigration officers at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.  It is critical that attention be paid to both components -- enforcement and services.  State legislators often rely on these federal officials in regional offices and at headquarters to answer constituent queries and inform state policy debates.  NCSL supports efforts to create more efficient, effective services and urges that NCSL be consulted as proposals are considered to reform immigration.

As Congress and the Administration consider immigration reform proposals, it is critical that the concerns of state governments be addressed.  States should be included in the process of proposal development, especially in proposals that impact the integration of new immigrants into state systems.  Special attention must be paid to ensure that such proposals do not include unfunded federal mandates.  Proposals must include funding to address any increased costs states may incur.

NCSL supports “state impact assistance grants” that will provide states with funds for health, education, and related services to noncitizens.  These grants must take into account the fact that some states have existing high levels of noncitizens and some states have recent high growth in the number of noncitizens.  Grants must be allocated in a way that assists both categories of states.   Such funds should be appropriated by state legislatures.

Citizenship

NCSL supports the promotion of citizenship as a national priority. Delays in citizenship applications are unjustified. Eligible applicants can then move into the mainstream of American cultural, economic and political life. The USCIS or appropriate agency should allocate sufficient resources to a more efficient citizenship adjudication process as well as an acculturation process. NCSL acknowledges the need for education to meet citizenship requirements.  States have led the way in easing barriers for eligible newcomers to become U.S. citizens.   State efforts have coordinated with USCIS to streamline processes and have leveraged different funding streams to expand programs.  We encourage the federal government to address barriers to naturalization and assist states in their efforts.

Coordination and Consultation

Communication, consultation, research and coordination with state and local government have been sorely lacking in immigrant policy. State legislators have found that, in recent years, the U.S. Departments of Health and Human Services, State, Justice, and Homeland Security have established and improved coordination.  State legislators strongly support federal efforts to develop and promote improved ongoing outreach plans to locate newcomers in specific communities. These efforts should include advance consultation with states, especially those involved with emergency arrivals of refugees and asylum applicants. The emergency funds for these circumstances should be released.  A lack of coordination leads to fragmented policies at the state level. Coordination between these federal agencies is critical to an effective national policy. The federal government should develop consistent policies for newcomer access to mainstream programs. Additionally, improved data collection and analysis, shared with the states would help identify best practices, implementation strategies and evaluation of immigrant policy. States need better consistent research on immigration flows and their impact on state and local communities and services.

Denying Benefits to Legal Immigrants

NCSL opposes federal efforts to deny benefits to legal immigrants and to citizens who are foreign born. This shifts the cost of taking care of needy legal noncitizens to the states and localities. The federal government has sole jurisdiction over immigration policy and must bear the responsibility to serve the immigrants it allows to enter states and localities. Eliminating federal benefits to noncitizens or deeming for unreasonable amounts of time including beyond citizenship does not eliminate the need, and state budgets and taxpayers will bear the burden. Denial of services to legal immigrants by states appears to violate both federal and state constitutional provisions, leaving states vulnerable to legal action.

In the 1996 Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act, Congress denied SSI, food stamps and Medicaid to legal immigrant noncitizens and to refugee noncitizens who had been in the United States more than five years. State legislators strongly opposed this provision as a $23.8 billion cost-shift to the states. Restoring access to those benefits has become a priority for NCSL. Non-citizen children, elderly and disabled are now turning to states to provide what should be federal assistance. 

NCSL applauds Congress and the Administration for restoring SSI and Medicaid to all legal immigrants and refugees who were in the country by August 22, 1996 and returning $11.8 billion of the cost-shift. In addition, refugees were given seven, rather than five years to become naturalized citizens to accommodate the backlog of cases at the INS and allow more time for refugees with limited education to prepare for the citizenship exam.   We join the Administration in urging the extension of deadline for those elderly and disabled refugees so that they can continue to receive  SSI benefits while pursing citizenship.  We also applaud the federal government for restoring food stamp benefits to certain legal immigrants, including children, individuals with disabilities and the elderly.  We congratulate Congress and the Administration for restoring access to the food stamp program for most legal immigrants and refugees in the 2002 Farm Bill.  (This position is further detailed in NCSL’s policy on Nutrition Assistance.)

NCSL congratulates Congress and the Administration for making affidavits of support legally binding so that sponsors of immigrants will live up to their commitment to support them. Voluntary agencies should similarly live up to their commitment to refugees. The Department of Labor should more vigorously enforce their labor certification process for employer sponsorship for both temporary and permanent foreign workers. State legislators support a limited period of alien to sponsor deeming.

NCSL supports the new HHS regulation limiting the definition of a means-tested benefit to Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF), Medicaid, Supplemental Security Income (SSI), State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) and Food Stamps. NCSL believes that the definition of a public benefit should be similarly accommodating to states' concerns about unfunded mandates.