Dear Colleague Letter 24-12
May 6, 2024
Dear Colleague:
ORR has issued a second allocation of Refugee School Impact (RSI) funding to States1 as a “set-aside” within the fiscal year (FY) 20242 Refugee Support Services (RSS) formula Refugee and Entrant Assistance (REA) allocation. This Dear Colleague Letter (DCL) explains ORR’s method of determining the second RSI FY 2024 allocation, and details the funding amounts. Program goals, services, eligible populations, and requirements are described in ORR Policy Letter (PL) 22-07, Refugee School Impact Program (PDF).
Qualification for FY 2024 Allocations
This is the third year of a three-year qualification period for the RSI program. States that qualified for funding last year will remain eligible to receive funding for this year. In FY 2024, forty-seven states whose arrived/served population was above the RSS base formula floor threshold will receive an RSI Set-Aside allocation. Consistent with past pattern and practice, ORR has elected to include floor states that have seen increasing arrivals.
Basis for Funding
The FY 2024 allocations to states are based on the number of ORR-eligible individuals, aged 0-18, who arrived/were served in FY 2021 and FY 2022 (combined), as reported in the ORR-5 and verified against a number of federal sources in the ORR Refugee Arrivals Data System (RADS). ORR will use this two-year lookback period to determine RSS allocations, providing a level of funding stability in response to the variance in arrivals during the relevant time period.
FY 2024 Allocations Chart
The chart below documents the number of eligible individuals who arrived/were served in each state in FY 2021 and FY 2022 and the State’s corresponding first and second funding allocations for the RSI program for FY 2024. As required under ORR regulation 45 C.F.R. §400.210, these funds must be obligated by September 30, 2025, and liquidated by September 30, 2026.
FY 2024 RSI Allocations by State
State | Total Arrived/Served FY 2021 & FY 2022 | First Allocation (DCL 24-05) | Second Allocation | Total Funding |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | 35 | $100,000 | $100,000 | $200,000 |
| Alaska | 24 | $100,000 | $100,000 | $200,000 |
| Arizona | 988 | $1,201,165 | $1,201,166 | $2,402,331 |
| Arkansas | 82 | $140,000 | $140,000 | $280,000 |
| California | 4,682 | $3,000,000 | $3,000,000 | $6,000,000 |
| Colorado | 688 | $836,439 | $836,439 | $1,672,878 |
| Connecticut | 164 | $199,384 | $199,384 | $398,768 |
| Delaware | 36 | $100,000 | $100,000 | $200,000 |
| District Of Columbia | 114 | $140,000 | $140,000 | $280,000 |
| Florida | 9,007 | $4,000,000 | $4,000,000 | $8,000,000 |
| Georgia | 828 | $1,006,645 | $1,006,644 | $2,013,289 |
| Idaho | 383 | $465,634 | $465,634 | $931,268 |
| Illinois | 733 | $891,148 | $891,148 | $1,782,296 |
| Indiana | 434 | $527,637 | $527,637 | $1,055,274 |
| Iowa | 371 | $451,045 | $451,045 | $902,090 |
| Kansas | 320 | $389,041 | $389,041 | $778,082 |
| Kentucky | 2,067 | $1,750,000 | $1,750,000 | $3,500,000 |
| Louisiana | 171 | $207,894 | $207,894 | $415,788 |
| Maine | 122 | $148,322 | $148,322 | $296,644 |
| Maryland | 753 | $915,463 | $915,463 | $1,830,926 |
| Massachusetts | 673 | $818,203 | $818,203 | $1,636,406 |
| Michigan | 905 | $1,100,258 | $1,100,258 | $2,200,516 |
| Minnesota | 445 | $541,011 | $541,011 | $1,082,022 |
| Missouri | 596 | $724,590 | $724,589 | $1,449,179 |
| Montana | 60 | $135,000 | $135,000 | $270,000 |
| Nebraska | 279 | $339,195 | $339,195 | $678,390 |
| Nevada | 397 | $482,654 | $482,654 | $965,308 |
| New Hampshire | 72 | $140,000 | $140,000 | $280,000 |
| New Jersey | 887 | $1,078,374 | $1,078,374 | $2,156,748 |
| New Mexico | 77 | $140,000 | $140,000 | $280,000 |
| New York | 1,651 | $1,400,000 | $1,400,000 | $2,800,000 |
| North Carolina | 857 | $1,041,901 | $1,041,901 | $2,083,802 |
| North Dakota | 55 | $135,000 | $135,000 | $270,000 |
| Ohio | 809 | $983,545 | $983,545 | $1,967,090 |
| Oklahoma | 92 | $140,000 | $140,000 | $280,000 |
| Oregon | 240 | $291,781 | $291,781 | $583,562 |
| Pennsylvania | 890 | $1,082,021 | $1,082,021 | $2,164,042 |
| Rhode Island | 60 | $135,000 | $135,000 | $270,000 |
| South Carolina | 223 | $271,113 | $271,113 | $542,226 |
| South Dakota | 58 | $135,000 | $135,000 | $270,000 |
| Tennessee | 558 | $678,391 | $678,391 | $1,356,782 |
| Texas | 5,483 | $3,000,000 | $3,000,000 | $6,000,000 |
| Utah | 369 | $448,613 | $448,613 | $897,226 |
| Vermont | 63 | $135,000 | $135,000 | $270,000 |
| Virginia | 1,414 | $1,400,000 | $1,400,000 | $2,800,000 |
| Washington | 1,227 | $1,400,000 | $1,400,000 | $2,800,000 |
| Wisconsin | 542 | $658,939 | $658,939 | $1,317,878 |
| Total | 40,984 | $35,405,406 | $35,405,405 | $70,810,811 |
Explanation of Allocations
Consistent with the first FY 2024 allocations, the second allocations fall into the following three tiers.
- A maximum funding tier for states that had 1,001 or more individuals arrive/were served, which was further broken down to:
- 9,001 or more eligible individuals ($4,000,000)
- 4,001-9,000 eligible individuals ($3,000,000)
- 2,001-4,000 eligible individuals ($1,750,000)
- 1,001-2,000 eligible individuals ($1,400,000)
- A per capita funding tier for states that had arrivals/served between 121-1,000 eligible individuals; and
- A lower funding tier for states that had arrivals/served of 120 or fewer eligible individuals, which was further broken down to:
- 71-120 eligible individuals ($140,000)
- 41-70 eligible individuals ($135,000)
- 40 or fewer eligible individuals ($100,000)
The goal of the tiered system is to ensure states with similar numbers of ORR-eligible individuals arrived/served receive comparable funding, and states with lower arrived/served numbers have sufficient funding for program sustainability.
Please note that although this allocation reflected is based on ORR-eligible individuals arrived/served for FY 2021 and FY 2022, the population eligible for services includes all arrivals for the past five-year period.
Resources
Please direct any questions about this DCL or the RSI program to your ORR Regional Representative/Regional Analyst or ORR’s Division of Refugee Assistance, at DRAprograms@acf.hhs.gov. We also encourage you to use ORR’s Technical Assistance provider(s) for additional resources on serving ORR-eligible populations.
Sincerely,
Kenneth Tota
Director, Refugee Program
Office of Refugee Resettlement
Footnotes
1. “States” throughout this DCL refers to States and Replacement Designees (RDs) funded to administer RSS.
2. October 1, 2023, through September 30, 2024.