President. I am pleased today to join my colleague. Senator KENNEDY. in introducing the Refugee Assistance Extension Act of 1985. This legislation would reauthorize for 2 years the funds that are necessary to domestically resettle those refugees whom we have admitted from overseas. Refugee resettlement on the whole has been proceeding in a fairly smooth manner in the past year. and some programs that promise substantial improvement are now being put into action. However. there still remain some significant problems with the resettlement programparticularly with respect to "welfare dependencythat is. the dependency rate" in certain Statesand this bill seeks to correct som P of those problems. The legislation spells out more explicitly the performance criteria that voluntary agencies should be judged on. and for the first time it requires that a voluntary agency fulfill its responsibility to provide for a refugees basic needs and develop and implement a resettlement plan that emphasizes selfsufficiency. I am pleased to report that the language which requires this responsibility has been approved by both the representatives of the voluntary agencies and the appropriate committees of the House and Senate. A refugees successful initial experience with the U.S. job market has been proven to be essential to his ultimate integration into U.S. society. and I believe these amendments will encourage a positive experience from the beginning of the refugees new life here. The legislation also encourages the States to thoroughly review a refugees situation before granting him public assistance. and it provides for penalties against those refugees who refuse legitimate Job offers or Job training. New provisions would allow refugees to work at entrylevel jobs and still receive other necessary refugeespecific public assistance. The programs that refugee resettlement specialists consider to be essential for proper adjustment to our society are continuedsuch as many social servicesyet it is time now to remove the line item funding for these programs and allow the regular appropriations process to determine the proper level of funding. In conclusion. I urge my colleagues to work with us in pursuing this necessary legislation. The key to a generous refugee policy is a successful program or domestic resettlement. and I feel this bill will help us achieve that goal. Mr. President.
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refugeespecific Refugee refugee refugees