SECTIONS 13275-13283 - California Statutes

WELFARE AND INSTITUTIONS CODE

SECTION 13275-13283

13275. The department shall require that a county's costs of
administering any employment-related and English training program
funded by the Refugee Social Services program funds derived from the
federal Refugee Act of 1980, as amended, shall not exceed the
percentage for county administrative costs permitted by the
department in administering the Refugee Targeted Assistance Program.

13276. (a) After setting aside the necessary state administrative
funds, the department shall allocate all social services funds
derived from the federal Refugee Act of 1980 (Public Law 96-212), as
amended, that are required to be used for employment-related and
English language training to each eligible county, in the same
proportion that refugees on aid in each eligible county bears to the
total refugees on aid in all eligible counties. The department shall
assign differential weights for refugees based on the length of time
that they have resided in the United States, as follows:
(1) For refugees who have resided in this country one year or
less, the department shall use a weight of 1.50 for the purposes of
calculating the allocation in this subdivision.
(2) For refugees who have resided in this country two years or
less, but more than one year, the department shall use a weight of
1.25 for the purposes of calculating the allocation in this
subdivision.
(3) For refugees who have resided in this country five years or
less, but more than two years, the department shall use a weight of
1.00 for the purposes of calculating the allocation in this
subdivision.
(b) After setting aside the necessary state administrative funds,
the department shall allocate all federal targeted assistance
received by the department to the counties designated by the federal
government as eligible in the same way funds are allocated by the
federal government in the final targeted assistance formula
allocations to states.
(c) For the purposes of this section, "eligible county" means a
county or city and county designated as impacted using a formula to
be developed by the department based upon the refugee arrivals in the
county during the preceding 60-month period for which the department
has data.

13277. (a) The department shall notify each county board of
supervisors of the availability of funds described in subdivisions
(a) and (b) of Section 13276.
(b) (1) Any county administering refugee employment social
services funds shall designate an agency which shall be responsible
for implementing a plan for the provision of services funded by
refugee employment social services funds.
(2) Until October 1, 1990, paragraph (1) does not apply to any
county on whose behalf the department is administering the refugee
employment social services funds.
(c) Any county which receives funds pursuant to the Refugee
Targeted Assistance program shall designate an agency which shall be
responsible for implementing a plan for the provision of services
funded by those funds.
(d) The plans required by subdivisions (b) and (c) shall be in
accordance with subdivisions (e) and (f) and Sections 13278 and
13279.
(e) (1) Each county shall administer refugee employment social
services funds and funds received pursuant to the Refugee Targeted
Assistance program according to a plan or plans developed by the
county and approved by the department.
(2) The plan or plans developed pursuant to paragraph (1) shall be
developed in accordance with guidelines which are issued by the
department and which reflect the full intent of this chapter that the
funding for, and provision of, services shall lead to the earliest
possible self-sufficiency for all refugee recipients of aid.
(3) Any plan or plans developed pursuant to paragraph (1) shall,
at a minimum, meet all of the following requirements:
(A) Each county board of supervisors shall ensure that the county
planning process is designed in such a way as to facilitate refugee
participation and public input in that process.
(B) The plan or plans shall include a description of how social
services and target assistance funds derived from the federal Refugee
Act of 1980 (Public Law 96-212), as amended, and allocated to the
county by the department will be used to provide services to
refugees.
(C) The plan or plans shall specifically address how services will
be delivered to refugees receiving aid in each county.
(D) (i) The plan or plans shall provide for the priority
consideration for funding refugee community-based organizations if
they demonstrate the capacity to implement the proposed programs,
which capacity shall be comparable to that of other competitors who
qualify for funding.
(ii) Clause (i) does not apply to any county which uses those
funds to pay for services for refugees participating in the program
authorized under Article 3.2 (commencing with Section 11320) of
Chapter 2 of the supplemental services component authorized by
subdivision (c) of Section 13280.
(f) Any plan or plans approved pursuant to Section 11320.2 which
is developed by any county which elects to utilize these funds to pay
for any service provided to, or any activity performed on behalf of,
any refugee participating in the program authorized by Article 3.2
(commencing with Section 11320) of Chapter 2 shall meet the
requirements of subdivision (e) and Section 13280.
(g) (1) Prior to October 1, 1990, the department shall discontinue
administering refugee employment social services funds for a county
pursuant to the request of the county.
(2) Commencing October 1, 1990, the department shall discontinue
administering refugee employment social services funds on behalf of
the county.
(h) For purposes of this section, "refugee employment social
services funds" means social services funds derived from the federal
Refugee Act of 1980 (Public Law 96-212), as amended, which are
required to be used for employment-related training for eligible
refugees.

13278. Commencing October 1, 1990, the county shall, to the extent
permitted by federal law, utilize funds as described in Section 13276
to pay for the costs of any services provided to, or activity
performed on behalf of, any refugee participating in the program
authorized under Article 3.2 (commencing with Section 11320) of
Chapter 2 if that cost is allowed under a plan approved in accordance
with Section 11320.2 and federal requirements for refugee
employment-related and English language training funds. The plan
shall be developed with significant participation by and input from
refugee community organizations, voluntary agencies, and other local
public and private entities involved in the refugee resettlement
process.

13279. (a) Employment-related and English training shall be
available to recipients of Refugee Cash Assistance and refugees
receiving county general assistance in those counties which are
designated as impacted, pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (c)
of Section 13276. If the county does not provide these services under
the program authorized under Article 3.2 (commencing with Section
11320) of Chapter 2, a portion of the funds allocated to the county
in accordance with Section 13276 may be used to provide services to
recipients of refugee cash assistance and refugee recipients of
general assistance based on federal requirements and service needs,
as outlined in the county plan developed pursuant to subdivisions (b)
and (c) of Section 13277.
(b) Those funds received pursuant to the Refugee Targeted
Assistance program which a county designates as funds needed to meet
other locally determined extreme and unusual refugee needs, in
accordance with federal requirements governing the use of targeted
assistance funds, are not subject to subdivision (a).

13280. (a) (1) In counties receiving federal refugee social
services or federal targeted assistance funding, or both, the county
welfare department shall include in its GAIN plan a section which
specifically addresses the provision of services for refugee
applicants for, and recipients of, aid pursuant to Chapter 2
(commencing with Section 11200) and the orderly transition of those
applicants and recipients into the GAIN program.
(2) County staff responsible for the administration of Chapter 2
shall work in conjunction with county staff responsible for the
administration of refugee programs, as well as with representatives
of local mutual assistance associations, voluntary agencies and other
organizations involved in refugee resettlement to ensure that the
section of the GAIN plan specified in paragraph (1) reflects the
needs of the refugee applicants for, and recipients of, aid under the
Aid to Families with Dependent Children program, the services are
delivered in accordance with the provisions of that section of the
county's GAIN plan which is specified in paragraph (1), and that this
transition occurs as quickly as possible within resources available
to the GAIN program.
(b) The department shall annually reevaluate that section of the
county's GAIN plan which is developed pursuant to paragraph (1) of
subdivision (a). This reevaluation shall be made in conjunction with
the county's development of its annual overall GAIN plan update and
will be subject to approval of the department.
(c) If a county submits a plan for statutory reductions, as
defined in subdivision (h) of Section 11320.21, the county shall
assess the effects of these reductions on the provision of GAIN
services to refugees and discuss these effects in its statutory
reduction plan.
(d) (1) A county may maintain within the GAIN program a
supplemental services component for refugees who would otherwise be
temporarily excepted from the full range of GAIN services. These
services shall complement regular services provided through Article
3.2 to prepare the refugee for self-sufficiency or eventual
transition into the GAIN program and shall be funded through federal
funds provided by the federal Office of Refugee Resettlement. County
boards of supervisors may determine how the services are
administered, subject to federal funding requirements.
(2) Any county which elects to implement the supplemental
services component authorized by paragraph (1) shall fully describe
the component in the section of its GAIN plan required by paragraph
(1) of subdivision (a). The description shall specify the types of
services planned to meet the special needs of refugees. Those
services shall be in accordance with the department's guidelines
governing the use of federal refugee social services and targeted
assistance funds.
(3) The GAIN refugee supplemental employment services authorized
by paragraph (1) for refugee AFDC applicants and recipients, to the
extent permitted by federal law, shall meet the requirements of the
Job Opportunities and Basic Skills Training program under Title IV-F
of the federal Social Security Act (Part F (commencing with Section
681) of Subchapter 4 of Chapter 7 of Title 42 of the United States
Code), and shall be subject to the approval of the department.
(4) Refugee AFDC applicants and recipients who are referred for
participation in the supplemental services component authorized by
paragraph (1) shall participate in the component services as a
condition of eligibility under Chapter 2 (commencing with Section
11200) and shall be subject to the sanctions specified by Section
11320.6 if the services meet the requirements of the Job
Opportunities and Basic Skills Training program under Title IV-F of
the federal Social Security Act (Part F (commencing with Section 681)
of Subchapter 4 of Chapter 7 of Title 42 of the United States Code),
and are determined by the county to prepare a refugee for
self-sufficiency.
(5) Refugee AFDC recipients already participating in a GAIN
component provided through Article 3.2 (commencing with Section
11320) of Chapter 2 shall not be removed from that component for the
purpose of participating in the supplemental component authorized by
paragraph (1) of subdivision (a).
(e) Any county which elects to implement the supplemental services
component authorized by paragraph (1) of subdivision (c) shall
provide the supportive services described in subdivision (e) of
Section 11320.3. These supportive services shall be funded with
federal refugee funds. GAIN supportive services funds shall not be
used to fund those supportive services.
(f) This section shall be implemented only in counties where
federal refugee social services funds or targeted assistance funds,
or both, are available to the county.

13281. Refugee social services funding which is identified as
Refugee Mutual Assistance Incentive funds shall be allocated by the
department to eligible counties in accordance with the formula
specified in Section 13276 and used to fund mutual assistance
associations to provide social adjustment and cultural orientation
services.

13282. The requirements established by this chapter shall be
applicable only so long as federal funds are available from the
federal Refugee Act of 1980 (Public Law 96-212), as amended.

13283. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the department
shall ensure that noncitizen victims of trafficking, domestic
violence, and other serious crimes, as defined in subdivision (b) of
Section 18945, have access to refugee cash assistance, and refugee
employment social services set forth in this chapter, to the same
extent as individuals who are admitted to the United States as
refugees under Section 1157 of Title 8 of the United States Code.
These individuals shall be subject to the same work requirements and
exemptions as other participants, provided that compliance with these
requirements is authorized by law. An exemption from these
requirements shall be available if physical or psychological trauma
related to or arising from the victimization impedes their ability to
comply. Assistance and services under this subdivision shall be paid
from state funds to the extent federal funding is unavailable.