In some areas. the committee has reviewed the rescissions proposed by the administration and found the rescission requests counterproductive. I especially want to commend the subcommittee for their action to propose rescissions in Federal education aid which are substantially less than the administrations request. I am very concerned about the committees request for rescissions above the Presidents request for refugee services. President Reagan requested rescissions totaling $50 million in fiscal year 1981. The committee increased the rescission by $25 million for a total rescission of almost $75 million for this fiscal year. The refugee assistance programs are critically important for many areas of the country which have large concentrations of refugees. In my district. Ramsey County. Minn.. with a population of less than 450.000 persons. we have more than 10.000 Indochinese refugees. The Federal reimbursement for services provided to these refugees by the county and State has been essential to insure that the needs of our new residents are being met. In combination with the Reagan rescissions. the committees proposal will reduce Federal reimbursement for cash assistance by approximately $24.1 million. medical assistance will be reduced by $12.6 million. and Federal reimbursement for social services will be reduced by $4 million. The effect of this action upon communities with large numbers of refugees will undoubtedly be adverse. If the administrations and the committees estimation of the projected need for Federal funds are incorrect. local governments will be forced to pay for these services from their own limited budgets. The importance of these funds can be demonstrated by a recent action of the Ramsey County Board of Commissioners. This week the board passed a resolution expressing the sense of the board that because of the financial difficulties facing the county and the difficulty in obtaining adequate Federal reimbursement. further initial resettlement of refugees should take place in other jurisdictions. I cannot endorse this action. but it does demonstrate the level of concern that many communities have about these Federal funds. These rescissions will only serve to aggravate this situation. Federal policy has been to reimburse fully the costs borne by local governments in serving refugees. This policy should continue and Congress must insure that adequate funds are available for that purpose. For that reason. this legislation leaves me in a quandary. On one hand. I am cognizant of the fact that the vast majority of funding for refugee programs remains intact. On the other hand. I must deplore the actions of the administration and the committee in reducing these funds. The administration and the committee support these rescissions because they believe that the number of refugees entering this country will decrease and that reallocation of funds can be made between States. I certainly hope that these projections are correct. I note that the administration has testified that if there are not sufficient funds. they will request a supplemental appropriation. I am also mindful that the LaborHealth. Education and Welfare Subcommittee has acted with compassion on these requests in the past. The chairman of the subcommittee is aware of my concern. and I wish to let him know that I am willing to work with him in his oversight efforts to be sure that sufficient funds are available to assist the refugees in making a difficult transition to our country.
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refugee refugees