particularly, have accepted this job when they might have been placed in areas of higher skills. But it seems, our history is such, they don't stay there very long. When they become acclimated, when they get some language, they tend to move quickly to better paying jobs.

You spoke recently, to a previous witness, about moving out of the enclaves. In think there is a greater facility for movement in New Jersey, I think, than you would generally find, because we find that these enclaves are really reception points, and they move quite quickly into the suburban areas when they become economically secure.

Senator KENNEDY. And you have been satisfied from your own experience that there haven't been instances, or the instances have been minimal, as far as employment goes, in regard to prejudice against Cubans entering and working here?

Mr. LYNCH. I have seen no reliable evidence of prejudice. Let me take away the word "reliable." No evidence.

Senator KENNEDY. I want to thank you very much, Mr. Lynch, for your very helpful testimony. The kind of background and experience in this field which you possess, have given your comments a very special weight. I want to thank you very much for coming.

Our next witness is Mr. Edwin Hann, Jr., Deputy Director, Division of Public Welfare, Department of Institutions and Agencies.

Mr. Hann has a 30-year record of distinguished service. Mr. Hann, what we are primarily interested in is the number of Cuban refugees who are on public welfare, and how you can relate those figures to the number of Americans who are on public welfare, whether there have been any recent changes or developments, and whether you can draw any conclusions as to motivation of Cubans from the fact that they are industrious and highly motivated in their desire to remain off the public welfare.

Mr. HANN. Senator, relating to what Mr. Thomas has said, and I do have a paper here which

Senator KENNEDY. We will include that in your testimony.

(The following is the statement of Edwin F. Hann :)

INITIATION OF THE PROGRAM IN NEW JERSEY

In February of 1961, immediately following President John F. Kennedy's action to develop an emergency program for Cuban refugees in Miami, Florida, the Department of Institutions and Agencies was requested to determine the extent to which New Jersey communities had already been called upon to provide assistance and services to these unfortunate people. Although a poll of the larger municipalities resulted in a negative report at that time, an alert was given as to this potential responsibility.

Formal instructions concerning the program of Cuban Refugee Assistance were first issued by the Department of Health, Education and Welfare on March 17, 1961. The initial objective was to afford relief to refugees in Florida, but all states were requested to cooperate in the program as these persons were resettled to other areas of the country. It was stated that all assistance costs would be met from Federal funds, but that each State would assume administrative responsibility for affording assistance and services to those persons found eligible according to Federal definition.

By letter of April 3, 1961 Commissioner John W. Tarmburg advised the Regional Office of the Department of Health, Education and Welfare that the New Jersey Department of Institutions and Agencies, through its administrative agencies, would cooperate in the administration of the program. No formal agreement was deemed necessary since the program would be conducted through established organizational channels, and would involve no expenditure of State or local assistance funds. This was not a new experience for New Jersey, since

it had previously given the full cooperation of its public welfare resources to earlier programs for displaced persons.

ADMINISTRATIVE ORGANIZATION

Expressed in terms familiar to public welfare administration, the Cuban Refugee Assistance Program may be described as one in which eligibility is determined according to Federal standards, and need is evaluated according to State standards governing local determinations. In a general sense this is also descriptive of the various programs of categorical assistance, so that the existing organizational pattern could be adapted to administration of the Cuban program. Thus in New Jersey the Bureau of Assistance, Division of Public Welfare, has been responsible for Federal liaison, promulgation of policy and procedure, and program supervision; whereas the county welfare boards have received applications, determined the extent of need, and provided assistance and services in the same manner and extent as for the categorical programs.

In establishing eligibility for this program it had to be recognized that the status of any individual as a Cuban refugee could only be determined by records developed through registration and resettlement from Miami. Accordingly, all applications taken by the county welfare boards required preliminary clearance through the Bureau of Assistance for authorization of assistance payments. In order to expedite this process, the Bureau established a special staff section which could handle the almost daily telephone clearances with the county welfare boards and the Federal Regional Office.

A further consideration was that needy Cuban refugees would usually contact the welfare departments of the municipality where they were residing. These agencies normally meet emergency needs, but were not authorized to make claim against Federal funds from the Cuban Refugee Assistance Program. In order to protect municipal expenditures, cooperative action was necessary to expedite referrals and eligibility clearances so that the county welfare boards could respond to the determined needs of these people.

It can be seen that the key agencies in achieving effective administration were the county welfare boards, and they merit high praise for their response to the challenge of this program. Special credit is due to these agencies in Essex, Hudson and Union counties, since they have served over 90 percent of the cases. When it is considered that the county welfare boards had assumed administration of the dependent children's program in 1960, and in 1963 undertook increased responsibility for Aid to the Blind and the completely new program of Medical Assistance for the Aged, the extent of their cooperation can be measured more appropriately.

CASE LOAD AND COSTS

Schedules and charts giving detailed statistical and financial information have been made attachments to this statement, but mention of certain items will indicate the growth and extent of the program in New Jersey.

The first grants of assistance were made in May, 1961. Since then there have been more than 3,000 applications (3,021), of which only a small number were found ineligible. During the four years and eleven months the program has been in operation in this State, assistance amounting to $3,559,280 has been granted for a total of 25,592 case months, a case-month being defined as some payment being made to or on behalf of a case during a month. The average length of stay for a case on assistance during the total period has been 8.5 months. The average monthly payment per case has been $139.08.

The case load reached a maximum of 734 cases, including 2,032 persons, in November 1963, in which month expenditures totalled $112,854. After November, 1963 the case load trended downward to a low of 538 cases, including 1,312 persons, in December, 1965, in which month expenditures totalled $77,680. During March of 1966, 603 cases, including 1,477 persons, received assistance amounting to $92,079.

Of the 603 cases active in March, 1966, 171 (28.4 percent) had never received assistance prior to January, 1966. A total of 584 (96.8 percent) of the 603 active cases were resident in the counties of Essex, Hudson and Union. A study of the current cases in those counties shows about seven percent have been receiving assistance since 1962, about sixteen percent since 1963, and about fourteen percent since 1964. The county agencies advise that the long-term cases are aged or disabled persons and children.

Another related service has involved consultation and placement for "unaccompanied children", meaning persons under 19 years of age having no parents,

relatives or friends who could provide care and supervision if financial aid were provided through the Cuban Refugee Assistance Program. This service has been administered by the New Jersey Bureau of Children's Services in cooperation with the Federal Children's Bureau. Only four Cuban children, three from one family, have required this service because of health problems. There has been a total expenditure for foster placement of $7,280.

SPECIAL ADMINISTRATIVE PROBLEMS

The administration of this program has not been without its special problems which required resolution, the most critical being that of staff. In the early months the additional case activity could be absorbed, but as the load rose rapilly in the latter part of 1962 it became necessary to recruit and assign personnel to the Cuban program. Eventually this required a full-time supervisor and four full-time caseworkers in Essex County; a part-time supervisor and three fulltime caseworkers in Hudson County, and a part-time supervisor and one full-time caseworker in Union County. In order to overcome the language barrier, the full-time staff were Spanish-speaking and two of the caseworkers were themselves Cuban refugees.

In response to this experience, appeal was made to the Federal agency to provide financial participation in the costs of administration. As of February, 1964 funds were provided for the salaries of eight caseworkers, with one additional position being subsequently funded. The costs of clerical and other supportive services have been paid from local funds, and with the recent increase in applications for assistance a request for additional Federal participation is deemed justified and has been initiated. It also must be realized that the counties are continuously concerned with staff recruitment in carrying their on going responsibilities for other programs.

Another problem arose when the great majority of Cuban refugees no longer entered the United States directly, but came through other countries subject to the requirement of a visa and an affidavit of support. As of May, 1964, an amendment to Federal policy recognized the giver of the affidavit as the primary source of support, and provided that refugees so entering the country were not eligible for Cuban Refugee Assistance unless joining a spouse or children.

It became immediately apparent that many of these affidavits were not a financial resource, and there was actual need to be alleviated in some other manner. Under the New Jersey welfare laws this burden fell upon the municipal department of welfare, although 80 percent of the assistance costs could be claimed from State funds. The municipalities responded in a very creditable manner, and the problem may be resolved as new refugees are again coming by direct entry.

As the program matured another problem was encountered, in that Cuban refugees who had been resettled by the cooperating national agencies moved on their own initiative to different areas of the country where they applied for assistance. This became a matter of concern to the Federal agency, and social summaries on these "self-resettled" were required as an additional factor of eligibility. The consequent delay in clearances resulted in some further responsibility of the municipal departments of welfare to provide emergency assistance, but this has now been subsequently alleviated through cooperative efforts of the Federal Regional Office.

THE PEOPLE SERVED

In reviewing any public welfare program there must be concern whether the time, effort and money is merely an expenditure, or is actually an investment in the people served. In 1965 the Federal agency conducted an administrative review of the Cuban program in New Jersey and the following is a quote from the ensuing report: "The Cuban refugees in New Jersey are described by county workers as a proud group who were self-supporting in Cuba and want to regain their independence. They are not 'welfare prone' but seek assistance only until they can find employment." Despite the fact that these families have included the aged, the ill, and the young, the overall average limit of nine months on the assistance rolls indicates that the program has helped to achieve this goal of independence.

The concept of program investment logically focuses on the boys and girls who must be helped to adjust in a new environment. There is the young lady who completed her high school work with straight "A's", and having earned scholarships from various sources is now an engineering major at Douglass College.

There is another young lady whose talent in music has led to a four-year scholarship and the opportunity for summer study under the direction of Leonard Bernstein. There is the young man who was awarded first place in a science fair competition, will present his project at the International Science Fair, and has gained acceptance for further study in the field of aeronautics.

These brief references are merely illustrative of the numerous case situations which indicate a positive effect of the program in terms of the people served. The evaluative reports for the county welfare boards are quick to point out, however, that while the assistance program has ameliorated financial need, the cooperative efforts of other public and private agencies have been both necessary and effective in overcoming the problems of social, educational and vocational adjustment.

A look to the future must be guided by the experience of the past few months. There are indications that the Cuban refugees now being resettled are not as well equipped, because of age, health and education, to achieve an early transition to self-dependence. If this be true, even more effective planning and action will be necessary to provide the assistance and services they will require, while still responding to the many others in our communities whose social and financial problems are a continuing concern.

Mr. HANN. Relating to what Mr. Thomas previously said, this program, of course, was initiated as an emergency program in New Jersey. We have had experience before in relating our public welfare services to the needs of displaced persons, unfortunate people, so no formal agreement was necessary because it was able, the welfare assistance was able to be federally funded, we could absorb the operation of the program within our administrative organization. I have some detailed material on caseload and costs of the program, which in New Jersey the first payments began in May 1961. Since that time, and including the figures for March of 1966, we have had just slightly over 3,000 applications for assistance in cases, which could be individ uals or could be families.

During this 4 years and 11 months there has been expended in this State from Federal funds somewhat over three and a half million dollars as assistance for these particular people. This covers about 25,500 case-months; this means a month during which any particular person in a particular case received care under the Cuban refugee

program.

A significant figure, however, is that the average length of stay of any individual or case on the program is only 82 months, and considering all people over this period of time, the average month, there have been monthly costs paid to a family of $138.

Now, this would be slightly higher if we considered only the family cases because I may say that the findings, the recent administrative review, indicate that New Jersey, the needs, the assistance and services for the Cuban refugee persons have been entirely administered and entirely met in the same manner as we meet the ongoing caseload in New Jersey, which has a relatively high standard of service for these people.

I would like to indicate, however, as these gentlemen here have said, that over 90 percent of the Cuban refugee cases that we have handled in New Jersey have been in three counties, Essex, Hudson, and Union Counties, which, I believe, is consistent with the expressions that have been made here.

I might indicate, with respect-a couple of our mayors have indicated that their cities have not been called upon for assistance. Now, this is because of the administration in New Jersey. Since these Cuban programs parallel the county welfare board service program,

these are all administered through the county welfare board. We have had a couple of instances where, because of delays and because of certain social problems or changes in policy, where the municipalities have very rapidly responded to the need of meeting temporary situations. This has been only in a few situations in a short time. They have not had to meet this financial burden.

I would like to say, however, that what effectiveness we have had in New Jersey in meeting the needs of the Cuban persons, the county welfare boards have been the key agencies here, and we realize that New Jersey in 1960, they had just taken over complete administration for administrating the program for children, and right in the middle of 1963 they extended complete services for the blind and developed a whole new program and medical assistance for the aged; so that when they took on this program, it was fraught with considerable stress.

This leads to one thing, which I should mention on behalf of our county people who have been administering the program, and this is the problem of staffing. We had to absorb these particular cases, and until 1964 all the administrative costs in toto were borne through the county welfare system. However, in 1964 the Federal Government did assume responsibility for the administrative costs of caseworkers who are giving full time to this program, and at the same time they are paying for the salary costs of the caseworkers in administering the Cuban program.

I would also like to point out that as these special sections were set up to administer the program, we did, in order to overcome the language barrier, employ Spanish-speaking persons, and actually two Cuban refugees are themselves administering the program in New Jersey.

In reviewing any program of a public welfare nature we are interested in whether or not what we are doing in time, effort, and money is merely an expenditure or an investment in the people we are serving. In 1965 the Federal agency conducted an administrative review in New Jersey, and I would like to quote from that report the following:

The Cuban refugees in New Jersey are described by county workers as a proud group who were self-supporting in Cuba and want to regain their independence. They are not "welfare prone" but seek assistance only until they can find employment.

As I have indicated, despite the fact that there are many young, aged, and ill, the overall average limit of these people being on the welfare, on the assistance roll, was slightly under 9 months, which indicates the program has helped them in this transitional period of financial need and has helped them obtain this goal of independence. Reference was made to the young people, with whom we would necessarily have a special interest, and how they adjusted in this environment. There is a young lady who has completed her high school work here in New Jersey with straight A's, and has received a scholarship, and she is an engineering student in Douglass College. There is another young lady whose talent in music has led to a 4-year scholar-. ship and the opportunity for summer study under the direction of Leonard Bernstein. There is the young man who was awarded first place in a science fair competition, will present his project at the International Science Fair, and has gained aceptance for further study