 State Letter #04-15
TO: State Refugee Coordinators
National Voluntary Agencies
Other Interested Parties
FROM: Dr. Nguyen Van Hanh
Director
Office of Refugee Resettlement
SUBJECT: Data Collection by DB Consulting
It is time again for our contractors, DB Consulting, to collect information for the Annual Refugee Survey from voluntary agency affiliates.
DB Consulting conducts this survey by obtaining the contact information for refugees from local resettlement agencies and sending an interview request letter to refugees in English and in their native language. Interviewers are recruited according to refugee language needs and are trained in how to conduct the survey. Around 40 questions are asked. Information is collected through interviews with refugees that take 30 to 90 minutes, depending on the size of the household. The type of information collected includes demographic data, English language competency, job training, labor force participation, household income, and welfare utilization rate. Refugees and refugee organizations in your State and voluntary agency network may be contacted regarding this survey. Please make the local resettlement agencies in your national voluntary agency network aware of this survey and encourage their participation and cooperation.
This survey helps the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) measure and document the effectiveness of the refugee resettlement program as required by section 413(b)(1) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) . Under this section of the INA, ORR is required to report annually to Congress with:
“an updated profile of the employment and labor force statistics for refugees who have entered under this act within the five-fiscal-year period immediately preceding the fiscal year within which the report is to be made and for refugees who entered earlier and who have shown themselves significantly and disproportionately dependent on welfare as well as a description of the extent to which refugees received the forms of assistance or services under this chapter during that period…”
Data from this survey tracks the progress of refugees over a five-year period through use of the Annual Survey Form (ORR-9). This form is an OMB-approved data collection instrument. The ORR-9 does not duplicate any other information collection; it is unique in its frequency, subject matter, and geographic coverage.
Refugee survey respondents are assured of confidentiality in the letter they are sent by DB Consulting. The information provided by refugee respondents during the survey is used only to meet ORR’s reporting requirements, and to assist ORR-supported programs. Information obtained from the survey will not be released to anyone in any identifiable form unless required by law.
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