NEW YORK, CMC – The Governor of New York, Kathy Hochul, has awarded US$20 million to 17 community-based organizations that help Caribbean and other refugees become employed while adjusting to their new homes in New York.
Many of the migrants arriving in New York after crossing the southern border of the United States are nationals from Haiti, Cuba, Venezuela, Nicaragua, and Honduras.
Hochul said the Refugee Support Services Program, funded by the US federal Office of Refugee Resettlement, continues to be “a fundamental part of the state’s successful efforts to resettle refugees in communities across New York.
“New York State has a proud history of welcoming those displaced by violence or fleeing persecution with open arms,” she said. “These investments will lift refugee communities and represent our unwavering commitment to the possibility and promise they bring to our state.”
Hochul said the Refugee Support Services Programme provides services that address barriers to Employment, such as social and cultural adjustment, job search skills, work experience, and English proficiency.
She said transitional services are also provided to ensure continued Employment and enhance advancement opportunities.
The governor said the New York Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance’s Refugee Services bureau is responsible for implementing programs and services to assist refugees in New York State.
She said federal resources are directed to local entities that help refugees and their families, as well as others in a similar immigration status, to achieve economic and social self-sufficiency.
Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance Commissioner Barbara C. Guinn said, “New York’s heritage is heavily influenced by our willingness to accept and help people fleeing persecution, violence, and intolerance abroad.
“As we recognized World Refugee Day this week, we continue that proud tradition by providing a haven for these individuals and families, along with the support they need to start life anew in our state,” she added.
New York Secretary of State Walter T. Mosley said the state “has always been a haven for individuals fleeing violence and persecution.
“We recognize the significant contributions of our refugee and immigrant populations, and through the Department of State’s Office for New Americans, we work to support and uplift these individuals as they transition to a new life here in our state,” he added. “This US$20 million award builds on those efforts and will help provide refugees with the tools they need to succeed and thrive in today’s job market.”
Hochul said 17 not-for-profit refugee services providers nationwide were awarded funding to provide Employment and transitional support services to help recently resettled refugees and their families adapt to life in the US.
The governor said New York State welcomed nearly 4,200 refugees or individuals on Special Immigrant Visas between October 2022 and September 2023, most of whom resettled in communities upstate.
She said refugees are the most scrutinized and vetted individuals to travel to the United States. Before resettling, they undergo numerous security checks by intelligence agencies, including biometric tests, medical screenings, and in-person interviews with US Department of Homeland Security officials.
“Refugees living in New York make significant contributions to the state’s economy as earners, taxpayers, and consumers, according to a study by the New American Economy,” Hochul said. “Refugee households earned an estimated US$6.2 billion annually and contributed roughly US$2 billion in federal, state, and local taxes.”
Last week, New York City Mayor Eric Adams welcomed US President Joe Biden’s executive order expanding work authorization for longtime undocumented Caribbean and other immigrants.
Biden recently announced new actions that would support the ability of undocumented Caribbean and other immigrants to work and remain in the United States with their families without fear of deportation. At the same time, they pursue a pathway to legal status.
On Tuesday, Adams thanked and congratulated Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, and the Biden administration for their “bold, compassionate leadership over the past few weeks.”
“New York City is a city of immigrants, and millions have come to our city and our country in pursuit of the American Dream over the past two centuries. They didn’t expect it to be handed to them — they came to work for it,” said Adams, stating that Biden has “brought that dream a step closer to reality for so many once again.
“The executive orders the president has issued over the past few weeks will bring order to the border, relief to cities across the country, and opportunity to millions who have had to work under the table, far too often in dangerous jobs that don’t pay living wages because the employees were not able to work legally,” he added.
Adams said immigrants helped by Biden’s executive order on Tuesday are “our neighbors, community leaders, and parents.
“They have been in the United States for years, paying taxes and enriching the fabric of our country,” he said.
But the mayor said that while President Biden’s executive orders over the past weeks will be “a tremendous help, the fact remains that extreme Republicans in Congress have refused to pass any form of comprehensive immigration reform or appropriate the funding that cities like New York need.
“The time for Congress to put politics aside and reform our immigration system is now,” he said. “Millions of immigrants, thousands of businesses, and a nation built by those who came to our shores ready to work for a better life demand it.”
Biden announced on Tuesday that this new process will help certain noncitizen spouses and children apply for lawful permanent residence – “status that they are already eligible for – without leaving the country.”
“These actions will promote family unity and strengthen our economy, providing a significant benefit to the country and helping US citizens and their noncitizen family members stay together,” he said.
To be eligible, Biden said noncitizens must have resided in the United States for ten or more years as of Jun. 17, 2024, be legally married to a US citizen, and satisfy all applicable legal requirements.
He said that, on average, those who are eligible for this process have resided in the US for 23 years.
The president said those approved after the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) case-by-case assessment of their application will be afforded three years to apply for permanent residency.
“They will be allowed to remain with their families in the United States and be eligible for work authorization for up to three years,” Biden said. “This will apply to all married couples who are eligible.”
He said this action will protect about half a million spouses of US citizens and about 50,000 noncitizen children under 21 whose parent is married to a US citizen.
Biden said the new policy will allow immigrants, including DACA recipients and other Dreamers, young people who were brought to America as children, who have earned a degree at an accredited US institution of higher education, and who have received an offer of Employment from a US employer in a field related to their degree, to obtain work visas more quickly.
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