Fiscal Year 2020 Services to Older Refugees Support Services Set-Aside

Dear Colleague Letter 20-02

Publication Date: October 23, 2019
Current as of:

October 22, 2019

Dear Colleague:
ORR will issue Services to Older Refugees (SOR) funding to states as a “set-aside” within the fiscal year (FY) 20201 Refugee Support Services (RSS) formula allocation. This letter details SOR FY 2020 allocation determinations and final amounts. For a description of program goals and recommended services, as well as program reporting and monitoring activities, please reference PL 19-03.

FY 2020 Allocations
The FY 2020 allocations to states and replacement designees are based on the number of ORR-eligible individuals aged 60 or older who arrived and were served in FY 2018, as reported in the ORR Refugee Arrivals Data System (RADS).

The chart below documents the number of eligible individuals served in each state in FY 2018 and the corresponding funding allocations for the SOR program for FY 2020. The proposed allocations are based on the availability of federal funding and will be included in the quarterly FY 2020 RSS allocation as a “set- aside.” As required under ORR regulation 45 C.F.R. §400.210, these funds must be obligated by September 30, 2021, and must be liquidated by September 30, 2022.

ORR plans to continue funding states for three years before needing to requalify. FY 2020 is considered year two of the three year period, as the qualifying year was FY 2019. States and replacement designees that served over 10 ORR-eligible individuals aged 60 and over in year one, continue to qualify for funding. As a result and as noted in the chart below, seven states that were funded in FY 2019 will continue to be funded in FY 2020 even though their client population fell below the total served floor of 10.

State, Replacement Designee

Total Served FY18 Arrivals Aged 60 or Older

FY20 Allocation
California 243 350,000.00
Florida 116 285,000.00
Texas 116 285,000.00
Washington 99 240,000.00
New York 92 240,000.00
Michigan 75 195,000.00
Ohio 72 195,000.00
Illinois 68 195.000.00
Virginia 53 155,000.00
Minnesota 49 155.000.00
Pennsylvania 48 155,000.00
North Carolina 41 125,000.00
Arizona 40 125,000.00
Georgia 38 125,000.00
Oregon 37 125,000.00
Tennessee 32 100,000.00
Missouri 31 100,000.00
Kentucky 30 100,000.00
Maryland 26 100,000.00
Massachusetts 25 100,000.00
Indiana 24 100,000.00
Colorado 18 85,000.00
South Dakota 18 85,000.00
Nevada 16 85,000.00
Iowa 16 85,000.00
New Jersey 14 85,000.00
North Dakota 13 85,000.00
Wisconsin 13 85,000.00
Kansas 12 85,000.00
Nebraska 11 85,000.00
Idaho 11 85,000.00
Louisiana 10 75,000.00
Utah 8 75,000.00
Oklahoma 8 75,000.00
South Carolina 7 75,000.00
Connecticut 6 75,000.00
Vermont 5 75,000.00
Maine 4 75,000.00
New Hampshire 4 75,000.00
Total 1,549 5,000,000.00

 

Explanation of Allocations
FY 2020 allocations were based solely on a tiered system rather than per capita. The goal of the tiered system is to ensure those states with similar arrival numbers receive comparable funding, while also ensuring that those states with lower arrivals have sufficient and sustainable funding. The tiered breakdown is as follows: for states that served over 200 eligible individuals, ($350,000); 100-199 eligible individuals, ($285,000); 90-99 eligible individuals, ($240,000); 65-89 eligible individuals, ($195,000); 45-

64 eligible individuals, ($155,000); 35-44 eligible individuals, ($125,000); 20-34 eligible individuals, ($100,000); 11-19 eligible individuals, ($85,000); and 10 and under eligible individuals, ($75,000).

Resources
Please direct any questions about this Dear Colleague Letter or the SOR program to your ORR Regional Representative. We also encourage you to utilize ORR’s Technical Assistance provider(s) for additional resources on serving refugees.

Sincerely,
Jonathan H. Hayes
Director
Office of Refugee Resettlement


Footnote:

1. October 1, 2019 through September 30, 2020.

Audiences: