European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - June 22, 1986, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Sunday Juris 22, 1986 the stars and stripes Page 7 55% of refugees on Dole officials say Washington a slightly More than half of the refugees who have been in the United slates less than three years arc on welfare and in califor Nia the figure has risen to 90 percent officials from the department of health and human services say. With a National average of 55.5 percent of these refugees on welfare the numbers vary widely from slate to state from lows near 4 percent in Arkansas and Arizona to California s 90 percent. Philip hoi Man said Friday he is director of policy and Analy Sis for the office of Refuge resettlement. The statistics were presented at a hearing Friday before the Senate judiciary subcommittee on Immi. Galion and refugees. The subcommittee conduct ing its mid year review of refugee programs also heard testimony from state department and Immi Gration and naturalization service officials. Nationally there s been an increase Over the Las few years in the percentage of new refugees receiving welfare Hotman said in a Telephone interview. He said the figure has gone up about i percent year. The state department estimates that in this fiscal year which began last october. 61,000 refugees will arrive in the country slightly More than Hal of them from Southeast asian nations of Cambodia Laos and Vietnam. Refugees arc defined As people fleeing political oppression in other nations. For the first three years that refugees live in the country the Federal government pays the full Cost of any Cash assistance they receive. After that stale governments assume their usual share which is nor Mally about 50 percent of the welfare payments. California has by far the nation s largest refugee population with an estimated 65,730 that have arrived in the last three years according to the health and human services study. Of that number 59,436 were found to be receiving welfare in the government s study. The figures were As of sept. 30, 1985, Halman said. The lowest percent was in Wyoming where Only one of the 2b resident refugees was receiving welfare. Holman said it was t Clear Why the ratio of Refu gees on welfare was so High in California but that it was Likely the state s relatively High Benefit level Shad something to do with it. Each state sets its own welfare payment amounts. Other Low states and their refugee populations that have been Here less than three years were Arizona with 95 out of 2,120 refugees on welfare or 4.5 percent Arkansas with 33 out of. 808, or 4.1 per cent District of Columbia with 45 out of 541, or 8.3percent and South Dakota with 33 out of 371, or 8.9 percent. High states included Massachusetts with 7.004 out of its 8,750 new refugees on welfare or 80 per cent Washington with 5,544 out of 7 492, or 74 percent and Hawaii 71 with 596 out of 839, or 71 percent. Texas the state with the nation s second largest refugee population was giving welfare to 2,138 of its m,o5