Section 218-RICR-20-00-6.6 - Application and StandardsA. The following general requirements apply to all refugees regardless of their duration of residence in the United States.1. The sponsor's income and resources may not be considered accessible to an applicant for or recipient of assistance solely because the person is serving as a sponsor.2. Resources not readily accessible to the refugee, such as resources remaining in the applicant's country of original, may not be considered available to an applicant for or a recipient of assistance.B. Requirements for RCA 1. All applicants for RCA must provide the name of the resettlement agency or sponsor who was responsible for their resettlement.2. Refugee Cash Assistance benefit levels are based upon RIW standards and payment levels as follows:a. Treatment of Unearned Income (1) RIW Regulations govern the treatment of unearned income to the recipients of RCA-RIW (see Part 2 of this Subchapter). However, only cash and/or in-kind assistance actually available to the refugee from the sponsoring agency is counted as unearned income.b. Treatment of Earned Income (1) In general, earned income disregards are applied to the recipients of RCA-RIW (see Part 2 of this Subchapter).c. Treatment of Resources (1) The RIW Regulations regarding resources govern the treatment of resources for applicants and recipients of RCA-RIW (see Part 2 of this Subchapter). For special RCA considerations, see § 6.6(B) of this Part.C. Continuation of RCA 1. The goal of the Office of Refugee Resettlement program is to promote self-sufficiency within the shortest possible time after a refugee's entrance into the United States, which is consistent with the Federal Refugee Resettlement Program Goals (Pub. Law 97-363, § 412(a)(6)(B), 8 U.S.C. § 1101). The following are requirements for continuation of RCA: a. RCA recipients must meet RIW requirements pertaining to employment and training program participation, work/employment training standards, and exemption from employment registration.b. Recipients of Refugee Cash Assistance are required to attend job interviews which are arranged by the Office of Refugee Resettlement, its designee or if applicable, the sponsoring agency. Refusal to attend a job interview is cause for sanctioning from RCA.c. As a recipient of Refugee Cash Assistance, a refugee cannot refuse to apply for or accept an appropriate offer of employment or employment training which meets the applicable minimum wage requirement, as determined by the Department of Employment and Training. Such recipient is required to accept an appropriate job offer without regard to whether such job would interrupt a program of services planned or in progress, unless:(1) Such refugee is currently participating in a program in progress of on-the-job-training or vocational training which is part of the refugee's employability plan and which is intended to lead to full-time employment; or(2) The refugee is enrolled full-time in a professional recertification program which meets the requirements in § 6.6(D) of this Part.D. Refugee RIW recipients must participate in and cooperate with RIW employment requirements. 1. Participation in the Office of Refugee Resettlement program employment training activities meets all requirements for RIW participation. All refugee RIW recipients are required to participate in either the RIW or the DHS/ORR program employment training activities, unless specifically exempt.E. A refugee who is a recipient of GPA must participate in the DHS/ORR program employment training activities, unless specifically exempt.F. RIW Recipients Refugee recipients of RIW who fail to participate in DHS/ORR employment or DHS RIW employment activities are subject to the RIW employment sanction procedures.
218 R.I. Code R. 218-RICR-20-00-6.6
Amended effective 8/5/2022