To: Board of Supervisors
From: Candace Andersen, District II Supervisor
Report Title: APPROVE Consideration of $375,000 in Measure X funds for Refugee Resettlement Services on March 11, 2025
?Recommendation of the County Administrator ? Recommendation of Board Committee
RECOMMENDATIONS:
APPROVE consideration of a Measure X allocation of $375,000 for Refugee Resettlement Services at the next scheduled meeting of the Board of Supervisors on March 11, 2025.
FISCAL IMPACT:
Approval to discuss a new Measure X allocation for Refugee Resettlement Services would have no immediate fiscal impact, though subsequent approval of a budget amendment of approximately $375k plus overhead would reduce the one-time Measure X fund balance of $1.5M available.
BACKGROUND:
Measure X dollars have typically been allocated during budget hearings or other regular meetings specifically called to allocate Measure X funds.
Unusual or unanticipated situations can arise which may justify the immediate distribution of Measure X dollars outside of the regular Measure X allocation cycle. One such instance has arisen on behalf of Refugee Relief agencies (email attached) and the Board of Supervisors is now being asked whether to consider an off-cycle request for Measure X dollars at its next regularly scheduled meeting, which is on March 11, 2025.
The need for refugee resettlement services is an unanticipated, urgent need. The federal government issued a stop-work order on all open cases in the Refugee Admissions Program, and there have been no stays on this action. There are efforts in Washington D.C. being made to receive a waiver through Secretary of State Marco Rubio or potentially restore funding through a court ordered injunction. To date, no relief has been granted.
Not only was all travel into the United States by refugees banned under this stop-work order, but the funding for any further resettlement services for those already in the United States has been cut off. Currently ...
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