I 
118TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 9217 
To establish, in the Office of Refugee Resettlement, the Destination Reception 
Services Program New Arrival Services Board and to authorize a grant 
program for providing funding for medium-term services to eligible arriv-
als in destination States and localities to promote their self-sufficiency, 
reduce costs of extended emergency service provision, maximize benefit 
to new arrivals and host communities, provide diversion from homeless-
ness, and promote the effective navigation and compliance of the immi-
gration process. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JULY 30, 2024 
Ms. MENG (for herself, Mrs. RAMIREZ, Mr. ESPAILLAT, Ms. NORTON, Ms. 
PRESSLEY, Mr. GOLDMAN of New York, Mr. CARSON, Mr. JACKSON of 
Illinois, Ms. WILLIAMS of Georgia, Mr. VARGAS, Ms. DELBENE, Mr. 
MCGOVERN, Ms. STANSBURY, Ms. BUSH, Ms. VELA´ZQUEZ, and Ms. 
CHU) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 
on the Judiciary 
A BILL 
To establish, in the Office of Refugee Resettlement, the 
Destination Reception Services Program New Arrival 
Services Board and to authorize a grant program for 
providing funding for medium-term services to eligible 
arrivals in destination States and localities to promote 
their self-sufficiency, reduce costs of extended emergency 
service provision, maximize benefit to new arrivals and 
host communities, provide diversion from homelessness, 
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and promote the effective navigation and compliance of 
the immigration process. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Destination Reception 
Assistance Act’’. 
SEC. 2. AUTHORIZATION OF DESTINATION RECEPTION 
SERVICES PROGRAM. 
Section 412 of the Immigration and Nationality Act 
(8 U.S.C. 1522) is amended by adding at the end the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(g) DESTINATION
RECEPTION
SERVICES
PRO-
GRAM.— 
‘‘(1) DEFINED TERM.—In this subsection, the 
term ‘eligible arrival’ means an individual who— 
‘‘(A) has been granted parole; 
‘‘(B) have been placed in removal pro-
ceedings; or 
‘‘(C) has a pending application for asylum. 
‘‘(2) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established, 
in the Office, the Destination Reception Services 
Program (referred to in this subsection as the ‘Pro-
gram’), which shall carry out the provisions of this 
subsection under the direction of the New Arrival 
Services Board (referred to in this subsection as the 
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‘Board’). The Program shall coordinate with the Un-
accompanied Children Program and the Refugee 
Program to ensure that eligible arrivals receive all of 
the services for which they are eligible. 
‘‘(3) NEW ARRIVAL SERVICES BOARD.— 
‘‘(A) APPOINTMENTS.—Not later than 30 
days after the date of the enactment of the 
Destination Reception Assistance Act, the Di-
rector, who shall act as chairperson of the 
Board, shall appoint 8 additional members to 
the Board who represent nongovernmental or-
ganizations with experience providing, evalu-
ating, and offering technical assistance on eligi-
ble services provided through the Program, in-
cluding organizations representing individuals 
with lived experience of forced migration. 
‘‘(B) FUNCTIONS.—The Board shall— 
‘‘(i) identify communities in which 
concentrations of eligible arrivals in need 
of assistance reside; and 
‘‘(ii) recommend the amount of fund-
ing to be allocated to such communities in 
accordance with formulas, policies, proce-
dures, and guidelines established by the 
Office. 
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‘‘(C) CRITERIA
FOR
ALLOCATING
FUND-
ING.—In determining the allocation of Federal 
funding to communities under this subsection, 
the Board shall prioritize funding for commu-
nities with— 
‘‘(i) a higher ratio of eligible arrivals 
compared to other communities; 
‘‘(ii) higher housing and transpor-
tation costs; or 
‘‘(iii) the most significant medium- 
term reception needs (in per capita or ab-
solute terms) in which the level of direct 
services provided by nonprofit, faith-based, 
or governmental organizations to families 
and individuals released by the Depart-
ment of Homeland Security is most acute. 
‘‘(4) PROGRAM STRUCTURE.— 
‘‘(A) FRAMEWORK.—The framework of the 
Program shall be similar to the framework of 
the Emergency Food and Shelter Program of 
the Federal Emergency Management Agency to 
facilitate the timely delivery of Federal funding 
in support of eligible arrivals. 
‘‘(B) DISTINCTION
FROM
ALTERNATIVES 
TO DETENTION.—The Program is not an alter-
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natives to detention program. Prior participa-
tion in an alternatives to detention program is 
not an eligibility requirement for eligible arriv-
als to receive Program services, nor is partici-
pating in monitoring or surveillance practices a 
condition while receiving Program services. 
‘‘(C) 
RECIPIENT
ORGANIZATIONS.—The 
Program shall provide funding to local govern-
ment entities and private nonprofit organiza-
tions to provide medium-term services to eligi-
ble arrivals who have been processed and re-
leased into the United States by the Depart-
ment of Homeland Security, including— 
‘‘(i) housing transition, rental, and 
utility assistance programs; 
‘‘(ii) medical and mental health care 
or insurance for such care; 
‘‘(iii) child care, child care assistance 
programs, and out-of-school programming; 
‘‘(iv) 
workforce 
development, 
job 
training, English language training, paid 
apprenticeships, work study, and loan pro-
grams; 
‘‘(v) local public transportation sup-
port; 
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‘‘(vi) interpretation and translation 
services; 
‘‘(vii) legal services, particularly serv-
ices supporting applications for work au-
thorization, asylum, and other types of hu-
manitarian relief; 
‘‘(viii) programs, including case man-
agement and social work services, to pro-
vide support to individuals accessing and 
navigating available assistance and serv-
ices; 
‘‘(ix) voluntary, coordinated relocation 
service; and 
‘‘(x) other eligible services, as deter-
mined by the Director. 
‘‘(5) LOCAL NEW ARRIVAL SERVICES BOARDS.— 
‘‘(A) COMMUNITY
IDENTIFICATION.—The 
Board shall identify, in accordance with criteria 
to be established by the Board, communities 
throughout the United States where eligible ar-
rivals are residing. 
‘‘(B) ESTABLISHMENT; 
DESIGNATION.— 
Each community designated pursuant to sub-
paragraph (A) desiring a grant under para-
graph (7) shall— 
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‘‘(i) establish a local new arrival serv-
ices board (referred to in this paragraph as 
a ‘local board’); or 
‘‘(ii) at the discretion of the Board, 
appoint an existing substantially similar 
board to carry out the functions of a local 
board. 
‘‘(C) MEMBERSHIP.—Each local board 
shall consist of— 
‘‘(i) the head of a unit of local govern-
ment within such community, or of a rel-
evant department of such local govern-
ment; 
‘‘(ii) to the extent practicable, rep-
resentatives of the organizations that are 
represented on the Board; 
‘‘(iii) representatives of other local, 
private nonprofit organizations, as appro-
priate; 
‘‘(iv) representatives of ethnic and 
community-based organizations; and 
‘‘(v) an asylum seeker or parolee 
being served by the Program. 
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‘‘(D) CHAIRPERSON.—Each local board es-
tablished pursuant to subparagraph (B) shall 
elect a chairperson from among its members. 
‘‘(E) 
RESPONSIBILITIES.—Each 
local 
board established pursuant to subparagraph 
(B) shall— 
‘‘(i) determine which local government 
entities or private nonprofit organizations 
are eligible to receive grants to provide the 
services referred to in paragraph (4)(C); 
‘‘(ii) allocate available Federal fund-
ing among the entities and organizations 
referred to in clause (i); 
‘‘(iii) monitor recipient service pro-
viders for Program compliance; 
‘‘(iv) 
reallocate 
Federal 
funding 
among service providers whenever a par-
ticular service provider fails to substan-
tially comply with Program requirements; 
‘‘(v) ensure proper reporting to the 
Board; and 
‘‘(vi) coordinate with other Federal, 
State, and local government assistance pro-
grams available in the community. 
‘‘(6) ELIGIBLE SERVICES.— 
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‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Director, in con-
sultation with the Board, shall annually estab-
lish guidelines specifying which services for eli-
gible arrivals may be funded under the Pro-
gram, which may include— 
‘‘(i) noncustodial housing services, in-
cluding rental and utility assistance; 
‘‘(ii) cultural orientation training; 
‘‘(iii) culturally competent interpreta-
tion and translation services; 
‘‘(iv) workforce development services, 
including 
education, 
employment, 
and 
training services, work study, loan pro-
grams, and childcare support; 
‘‘(v) immigration-related legal serv-
ices, including preparation and practice; 
‘‘(vi) referral and case management 
services; 
‘‘(vii) medical and mental health serv-
ices or insurance for such services; 
‘‘(viii) local public transportation sup-
port; 
‘‘(ix) voluntary, coordinated relocation 
services; and 
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‘‘(x) other eligible services, as deter-
mined by the Director. 
‘‘(B) PUBLICATION.—The Director shall 
annually publish the guidelines established pur-
suant to subparagraph (A) in the Federal Reg-
ister before the first day of the fiscal year dur-
ing which they will take effect. 
‘‘(7) GRANTS AUTHORIZED.— 
‘‘(A) COMPETITIVE GRANTS.—The Direc-
tor, working through the Board, may award 
competitive grants to communities identified 
pursuant to paragraph (5)(A) which have estab-
lished a local new arrival services board to pro-
vide services to eligible arrivals who are residing 
in such communities. The allocation of available 
Federal funding among such communities shall 
be based on a formula developed by the Office. 
Grant funds allocated to a community pursuant 
to this subparagraph shall be disbursed to gov-
ernment human services agencies and local non-
profit organizations that have successfully pro-
vided human and social services in accordance 
with Federal, State, and local requirements, as 
applicable. 
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‘‘(B) FEDERAL
BLOCK
GRANTS.—A por-
tion of the Federal funding made available to 
carry out this subsection shall be reserved for 
Federal block grants to communities. Commu-
nities receiving funding under this subpara-
graph shall match every $1 of Federal funding 
with $1 of non-Federal funding. 
‘‘(C) PURPOSE OF GRANTS.—The primary 
purpose of the grants awarded pursuant to sub-
paragraph (A) or (B) shall be to increase the 
capacity of grant recipients to provide medium- 
term services and other service navigation as-
sistance to new arrivals to attain self-suffi-
ciency. 
‘‘(D) ELIGIBLE ENTITIES.—An entity is el-
igible to receive a grant under this subsection 
if the entity is— 
‘‘(i) a local government, an Indian 
Tribe, or a nonprofit organization (as such 
terms are defined in section 200.1 of title 
2, Code of Federal Regulations); 
‘‘(ii) a State of the United States, the 
District of Columbia, or the Common-
wealth of Puerto Rico; 
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‘‘(iii) any agency or instrumentality of 
a governmental entity listed in clause (ii) 
(excluding local governments); or 
‘‘(iv) physically located in a State, the 
District of Columbia, or a territory of the 
United States. 
‘‘(8) ADMINISTRATIVE
PROCEDURES
ACT.— 
When issuing guidelines to carry out this subsection, 
including setting eligibility requirements and making 
program changes, the Director shall not be subject 
to the procedural rulemaking requirements set forth 
in subchapter II of chapter 5, and chapter 7, of title 
5, United States Code (commonly known as the ‘Ad-
ministrative Procedures Act’). 
‘‘(9) AUTHORIZATION
OF
APPROPRIATIONS.— 
There is authorized to be appropriated, for each of 
the fiscal years 2025 through 2028, $3,000,000,000 
to carry out the Program established by this sub-
section.’’. 
Æ 
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