Congress OKs Big Cut in Immigrant Aid Funds : Amnesty: Bill goes to Bush, who asked that funds to assist new residents be slashed by $567 million this year. California gets about 60%.

Congress completed action Friday on legislation giving California and other states with large populations of new immigrants less than half of the $1 billion previously earmarked for 1991 assistance programs, promising to make up the difference next year.

The bill, which contains funds for both immigrants and refugees, was sent to President Bush after budget-weary House members accepted changes approved late Thursday by the Senate. The President, who requested the funding reduction, is expected to sign the measure.

The State Legalization Impact Assistance Grants program reimburses state and local governments for providing medical, welfare and educational aid for millions of illegal immigrants who were granted U.S. citizenship under the landmark 1986 amnesty law.

California receives about 60% of the funding. The remaining 40% is divided among Florida, Texas, New York and Illinois.

“The bad news is that SLIAG was reduced by $567 million this year. The good news is Congress promised to reimburse what it cut this year and last--which amounts to $1.13 billion in fiscal year 1992,” said Eric Cleays, an assistant to Rep. Ron Packard (R-Carlsbad).

In 1986, Congress agreed to provide $4 billion in assistance in equal increments over four years. But last year, under pressure to trim federal spending, Congress slashed $555 million from the $1-billion allocation and promised to appropriate the balance at a later date.

This year, however, the President proposed an overall reduction of $1.1 billion in the original $4-billion program: the $555-million cut last year plus the $567 million chopped from this year’s appropriation, with neither reduction to be made up in the future.

Congressmen from affected states fought bitterly, first against the White House and later against Sens. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.) and Bob Kasten (R-Wis.), who proposed borrowing money from the grants program to resettle recent Soviet immigrants.

In the end, a House-Senate conference committee agreed to the reduction proposed by Bush in this year’s allocation, but it insisted on making up the two years’ worth of cuts in next year’s legislation.

Rep. Edward R. Roybal (D-Los Angeles), who played a key role in fighting for the funds in the conference committee, said he was not disappointed in the outcome.

“We did well,” Roybal said. “The states are still playing catch-up with costs. We deferred funds, but they’re guaranteed to be here when the states need it.”

Sen. Alan Cranston (D-Calif.) was less pleased with the final legislation.

“It is deplorable that funds for the SLIAG program are being cut in half--and worse--because of poor administration by federal bureaucrats,” Cranston said.

Of the 3 million immigrants who have applied for amnesty under the 1986 immigration reform law, 1.6 million live in California.

One of every four amnesty applicants nationwide resides in Los Angeles County. These 850,000 residents account for 10% of the county’s total population and about 20% of all patients who receive medical care from the county.

“The reduction will result in a cut in vital state and local services and will ultimately hurt the very people we are attempting to help with the amnesty program,” Cranston said.

But Mark Tajima, a Los Angeles County analyst, said the delay in reimbursement will not reduce services for the coming year. “We’re banking on the federal government living up to its commitment,” he said.

Virginia A. Collins, the county’s division chief for state and federal programs said that if the funds are not reinstated in next year’s budget, Los Angeles County would lose about $100 million.

“It would mean the decimation of the health care system in L.A. County,” Collins said.

The grant funds were contained in the 1991 appropriation for the departments of labor, health and human services, and education. The measure also included money for general refugee assistance appropriations that provide cash and medical services as well as social services to immigrants. Those funds actually increased this year.

Congress provided a total of $234 million for the refugee assistance program, up from $210 million last year. California received about $37 million of last year’s total.