a/ Adjusted for secondary migration through 9/30/91, rounded to the nearest hundred. No adjusted for births and deaths in the U.S. These figures do not include the 38,000 Amerasian immigrants and accompanying family members that have arrived since FY 1988. b/ Fewer than 100. c/ Less than 0.1 percent. -37 TABLE VI NON-INDOCHINESE REFUGEES: ARRIVALS BY STATE a/ The source of these data is the ORR Data System. Data on non-Indochinese refugees by State are not available before FY 1983. b/ Percentage of total U.S. arrivals for the period -38 C. SECONDARY MIGRATION Secondary migration is the term used to describe movement by refugees from the location where they were initially resettled upon arrival in this country to some other place. California is the favored destination of the Indochinese, and they are much less likely to leave California, once there, than are other residents. States in the Northeast and North Central regions have also received significant refugee in-migration. Secondary migration seems to be influenced by several major factors, including a desire to find improved employment opportunities, live in an area with a supportive ethnic community and perhaps near relatives or, in some cases, to have access to public assistance. ORR has developed a system based on reports from the States for compiling and maintaining data on secondary migration. These data are important not only for general program planning, but also for the accurate computation of formulas for distribution of funds to States. Results of the State reports are contained in ORR's Annual Reports to the Congress. D. ECONOMIC IMPACT The net economic effect of refugees in the U.S. derives ultimately from their contributions to the American economy and from the Federal, State, and local government taxes they pay. In the short term, the primary question is whether or not refugees are obtaining employment which enables them to become self-supporting members of American society. ORR conducts an annual native-language survey of Southeast Asian refugees who have come to the U.S. during the five previous years. The most recent of these surveys was conducted in October 1991 and included 608 refugee households with which interviews were completed. Results from the survey indicate that the labor force participation rate (those working or seeking work) for refugees 16 or older was 36 percent, compared to an equivalent rate of 66 percent for the overall U.S. population. As in previous years the labor force participation of refugees varied with length of residence in the U.S. The most recent (1991) arrivals had a labor force participation rate of 23 percent, while the 1990 arrivals had a labor force participation rate of 35 percent. This rate increased gradually with time in the United States. The 1991 survey also provides data on unemployed refugees (those who are in the labor force, but not working). Late in 1991, the overall U.S. unemployment rate was 6.4 percent, while the unemployment rate for refugees age 16 and older was 14 percent. Significant changes in unemployment occur for refugees over time. Those who arrived in 1990 had an unemployment rate of 28 percent by late 1991. Unemployment declined to 18 percent for 1989 arrivals and reached lower levels for earlier arrivals. -39 IV. ESTIMATED COSTS OF REFUGEE MOVEMENT AND RESETTLEMENT The Federal agencies which incur major program costs for the admission and resettlement of refugees in the United States are the Department of State, the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Justice's Immigration and Naturalization Service. The Department of State provides funding for: (a) processing of refugees abroad to identify those persons who may be eligible for the U.S. refugee admissions program; (b) ESL/CO/VO programs for refugees overseas; (c) medical examinations and transportation assistance through the International Organization for Migration; (d) initial reception and placement services in the United States through cooperative agreements with voluntary agencies. The Department of Health and Human Services has primary responsibility for the domestic resettlement of refugees. Under the Refugee Act of 1980, eligible refugees may receive support services designed to facilitate their successful settlement. The Immigration and Naturalization Service has responsibility for and bears the costs of determining eligibility for U.S. refugee resettlement. The estimated costs of services provided by the Department of State, the Department of Health and Human Services and the Immigration and Naturalization Service are based on the Administration's FY 1993 budget request for the funded admission of up to 122,000 refugees. It is not possible to provide accurate cost data on refugee utilization of other Federal programs because statistics do not account for refugees separately from the general population. Because of the significance of the AFDC, Medicaid, and Supplemental Security Income programs, however, an estimate based on the best available information concerning refugee utilization of these programs has been made. |