Stanislaus County approves contract for resettlement of refugees from Afghanistan
Stanislaus County has approved a larger contract with the International Rescue Committee as more refugees from Afghanistan are resettled in the county.
County supervisors voted Jan. 10 to boost the refugee services agreement with IRC by $216,000. The board action increases the county’s contract with IRC to $616,000 for assisting newcomers with access to public services, refugee cash assistance, employment and immigration services.
IRC, a leading nonprofit refugee resettlement organization globally, provides assistance to people who fled the humanitarian disaster in Afghanistan after the Taliban took control in August 2021.
Communities in Stanislaus County have taken in families and individuals who were evacuated from Kabul under special immigration visas and an emergency program.
Starting in November 2021, the county received an influx of hundreds of Afghan refugees that strained understaffed resettlement offices.
Many of the newcomers, like Abdul Basir, stayed in hotels and AirBnB units for weeks or months while trying to find long-term housing.
Basir, who fled Afghanistan with his family and stayed for months in a Turlock hotel, said Friday his family was able to find a rental home. He now has a full-time job.
“Right now, the majority are in permanent housing,” Basir said. “Most are working. We are becoming familiar with the community and our neighborhoods.”
IRC’s local offices were assisting 623 newcomers from Afghanistan as of June 2022, the organization said.
California is expected to receive 12,386 refugees in the current federal fiscal year that ends Sept. 30, a 200% percent increase over the previous year. Of those, an estimated 950 will come to Stanislaus County.
The federal government last year allocated $540,000 to the county for meeting the needs of refugees from Afghanistan through September 2024. The one-time funding supports Afghan refugees with short-term housing and helps them secure permanent housing. The support includes rental assistance, security deposits and hotel reimbursements.
The county’s Community Services Agency has worked for 16 years with IRC, which has branches in Modesto and Turlock, to assist refugees arriving from different countries.
