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93.576 REFUGEE AND ENTRANT ASSISTANCE_DISCRETIONARY
GRANTS

FEDERAL AGENCY

ADMINISTRATION FOR CHILDREN AND FAMILIES, DEPARTMENT OF
HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

AUTHORIZATION

Refugee Act of 1980, Public Law 96-212, Section 412, 94
Stat. 111, 8 U.S.C. 1522, as amended; Refugee Education Assistance Act of
1980, Title V, 94 Stat. 1809, as amended.

OBJECTIVES

To improve resettlement services for refugees. Program
objectives include: 1) Providing adequate health assessment activities for
refugees; (2) decreasing the numbers of refugees on public assistance and
the length of time refugees require such assistance; (3) promoting refugee
community and family stability; (4) encouraging placement of refugee
families in locations with good job opportunities and lower costs of
living; (5) increasing service dollars in areas with good resettlement
records; (6) enhancing services to disadvantaged refugee groups; services
to promote older refugees access to aging services, assist low income
refugees with matching funds for individual development accounts (IDA)and
(7) responding to national needs which are not the purview of any
particular State services program.

TYPES OF ASSISTANCE

Project Grants.

USES AND USE RESTRICTIONS

The discretionary grant program allocates a portion of
formula social service and targeted assistance funds to conduct projects
which promote refugee self-sufficiency or address their special needs.
Funds may be used only for the purposes set forth in the grant award. In
Fiscal Years 2004 and 2005, approximately 15 percent of social service
funds not earmarked by Congress were allocated through discretionary
programs; and 10 percent of Targeted Assistance program funds were also
obligated.

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

Applicant Eligibility

State and local governments and private nonprofit
organizations.

Beneficiary Eligibility

Refugees, asylees, Cuban and Haitian entrants, Amerasians
and certified trafficking victims.

Credentials/Documentation

Proof of immigration status eligible to receive services.

APPLICATION AND AWARD PROCESS

Preapplication Coordination

This program is covered under E.O. 12372.
"Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs." An applicant should
consult the office or official designated as the single point of contact
in his or her state for more information on the process the State requires
to be followed in applying for assistance, if the State has selected the
program for review.

Application Procedure

Most awards are granted on a competitive basis, as
specified in the program announcements. Each agency desiring to respond to
a program announcement is required to submit an application to the
Director of the Office of Refugee Resettlement. There is a prescribed
format for applications, as stated in the program announcements.
Application kits, containing the prescribed application forms and
supplemental descriptive information, are available from the
Administration for Children and Families (ACF). Applications are reviewed
and evaluated pursuant to criteria specified in the program announcement.
Applicants may also submit proposals for projects not specifically
identified in a program announcement, but which are relevant to the goals
of the refugee resettlement program. These applications will also be
subject to a review process and separate funding considerations when they
cannot be related to a specific program announcement. However,
applications which are not responsive to program announcements can be
approved only under special circumstances where the agency determines the
application to be so outstanding, and to address a need of such urgency,
that immediate, noncompetitive award is warranted.

Award Procedure

The Director of ORR makes the funding decision on all grant
awards. The Office of Grants Management concurs on grants administration
and policy compliance.

Deadlines

Contact the Headquarters Office listed below for
application deadlines.

Range of Approval/Disapproval Time

From 60 to 90 days.

Appeals

Not applicable.

Renewals

Renewals or extensions require additional approvals.

ASSISTANCE CONSIDERATIONS

Formula and Matching Requirements

Some activities under this program have matching
requirements.

Length and Time Phasing of Assistance

Generally, funds made available for this program will be
for budget periods ranging from 1 to 5 years.

POST ASSISTANCE REQUIREMENTS

Reports

Progress reports and financial reports are required,
usually on a quarterly or semi-annual basis. Final program and financial
reports summarizing the activities and accomplishments of the project in
relation to the approved goals and objectives are also required.

Audits

Periodic audits are made as part of the system of financial
management and internal control to meet terms and conditions of grants and
other agreements. In accordance with the provisions of OMB Circular No.
A-133 (Revised, June 24, 1997), Audits of States, Local Governments, and
Nonprofit Organizations, nonfederal entities that expend financial
assistance of $300,000 or more in Federal awards will have a single or a
program-specific audit conducted for that year. Nonfederal entities that
expend less than $300,000 a year in Federal awards are exempt from Federal
audit requirements for that year, except as noted in Circular No. A-133.
Nonprofit organizations receiving less than $25,000 a year in Federal
awards are exempt from Federal audit requirements, but records must be
available for review by appropriate officials of the Federal grantor
agency or subgranting entity.

Records

Grant recipients are required to keep all financial,
business, and program reports necessary for program review and audit to
insure that funds have been expended in accordance with the regulations,
grant terms, and conditions of this program.

FINANCIAL INFORMATION

Account Identification

75-1503-0-1-609.

Obligations

(Grants) FY 05 $71,500,000; FY 06 est $86,500,000; and FY
07 est $72,300,000.

Range and Average of Financial Assistance

From a minimum of $5,000 per grant to the maximum of
$19,000,000 based upon the type of funding and the services to be
provided.

PROGRAM ACCOMPLISHMENTS

In FY 2004, under the discretionary social services
program, ORR funded 299 grants (new and continuations), and 49 grants
under targeted assistance program (TAP) grants. FY 2005 est: 328
discretionary social services grants (new and continuations), and 49 TAP
grants. FY 06 est: 260 discretionary social services, and 49 TAP grants.

REGULATIONS, GUIDELINES, AND LITERATURE

Program announcements are published in the Federal
Register. All inquiries should be directed to the Information Contact
listed below.

INFORMATION CONTACTS

Regional or Local Office

Not applicable.

Headquarters Office

For program information on Discretionary TAP grants,
contact Nguyen KimChi, (202) 401-4556. For Discretionary Social Services
grants, contact Henley Portner, (202) 401-5363. Office of Refugee
Resettlement, Administration for Children and Families, Department of
Health and Human Services, 8th Floor, 370 L'Enfant Promenade, SW.,
Washington DC 20447.

Web Site Address

http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/orr

RELATED PROGRAMS

93.566, Refugee and Entrant Assistance_State Administered
Programs; 93.567, Refugee and Entrant Assistance_Voluntary Agency
Programs; 93.583, Refugee and Entrant Assistance_Wilson/Fish Program;
93.584, Refugee and Entrant Assistance_Targeted Assistance Grants.

EXAMPLES OF FUNDED PROJECTS

In fiscal year 2004 and 2005, ORR provided funds for
projects to: (1) promote community and family stability; (2)provide
vocational training, job search, and social services to help refugees
obtain employment; (3) provide placement of refugees in preferred
communities; (4) meet special needs of unanticipated arrivals; (5) meet
the needs of refugees arriving in the US with special conditions such as
positive HIV, trauma, physical and mental disabilities, and other health
related problems; (6) provide microenterprise development services to
refugees; (7)provide matching funds for individual development accounts
(IDA); (8) provide support for ethnic community self-help organizations;
and (9)funds to support orientation to the community. It is anticipated
that the programs will be continued contingent upon program performance
and funding availability for FY 2006.

CRITERIA FOR SELECTING PROPOSALS

Notice of the criteria for awarding funds is published in
the Federal Register or other program announcement for each type of
demonstration. See the Information Contact section for more information.

General Services Administration
Office of Chief Acquisition
Officer
Regulatory and Federal Assistance Division (VIR)