Refugees who have been on public assistance for more than five years will get their assistance payments terminated as a result of welfare reform.  Thereafter, there will be no cash assistance or food stamps available for them.  If these refugees are not American citizens, they will not eligible for any type of public assistance.  Therefore, FCNA is attempting to assist as many families as possible to reach self-sufficiency at the earliest possible date.

Fresno has a very high rate of unemployment.  This lead to a few possibilities of reaching self-sufficiency for people with limited education and English language.  The program's long-range goals are to relocate selected refugee families to areas with suitable employment opportunities and to assist them in becoming self-sufficient through appropriate training and employment at the relocation site.  This program assists refugees to move from a heavily impacted area with inadequate employment opportunities to an area with plentiful entry job openings, educational facilities, and an opportunity for teens to develop productive live styles and to avoid the high risk gang influences found in Fresno.  By moving them out of Fresno, we will also help reduce government welfare costs.

Refugees in areas heavily impacted by large numbers of refugees, such as California's Central Valley, also have disproportionate numbers who depend on public assistance.  Those who are relocated to non impacted areas outside of California will have an increased chance to gain self-sufficiency and self-respect.  The program will increase Fresno's refugee population to aware out of state opportunities for refugees where jobs are more readily available.  In addition, the refugees will realize that parents and grandparents will have the prospect of a better life-style, and that the children's chances for better education, home ownership, and gainful employment will be enhanced in non impacted areas.  The target population (Hmong refugees) will be most directly affected.  Friends and relatives will hear directly from relocated families of their experiences at the relocation site and may be encouraged to follow suit.  Previous experience with a similar program indicates that community cohesion is increased when refugee populations are relocated in low density, small communities.

This program is funded by the Fresno County Department of Social Services for the period of January 1, 1999 - June 30, 2000.