Duties of Tennessee Office for Refugees

  1. Law
  2. Tennessee Code
  3. State Government
  4. Refugee Absorptive Capacity Act
  5. Duties of Tennessee Office for Refugees

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The Tennessee office for refugees shall:

  1. Provide at least a written quarterly report to representatives of local governments to plan and coordinate the appropriate placement of refugees in advance of the refugees' arrival, and appear before the local government to provide additional information at the request of the local government. Specifically, the local government may request reporting of information related to the factors of absorptive capacity as stated in § 4-38-102.
  2. Ensure that representatives of local resettlement agencies, local community service agencies, and other publicly-funded or tax-exempt agencies that serve refugees in this state shall upon request meet with representatives of local governments to plan and coordinate the appropriate placement of refugees in the host community in advance of the refugees' arrival;
  3. Execute a letter of agreement with each agency providing refugee resettlement services in this state. The letter of agreement shall require the parties to mutually consult and prepare a plan for the initial placement of refugees in a host community and set forth the continuing process of consultation between the parties. The provisions of the letter of agreement shall be consistent with federal law regulating the resettlement of refugees;
  4. At least quarterly transmit to the chairs of the state government committee of the house of representatives and state and local government committee of the senate, and to the chair of the budget committee of either the city council or the county legislative body regulating the host community copies of:
    1. The letters of agreement;
    2. Any initial refugee placement plans prepared pursuant to letters of agreement; and
    3. Any communications received and responded to pursuant to subdivision (5), including how or to the extent any issue regarding the concerns of host communities and representatives of local governments was resolved; and
  5. Ensure that residents of host communities and representatives of local governments are aware that any and all concerns regarding local refugee resettlement activities in any host community shall be filed with the Tennessee office for refugees and further that the Tennessee office for refugees shall respond timely in writing to all such communications.


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