The federal Office of Refugee Resettlement has awarded the money to the Institute for Social and Economic Development of Coralville. The institute will use the money to continue its Individual Development Accounts program, in which refugees receive matching funds for money they contribute to savings accounts. The refugees put in $1,000 for a match of $2,000. The savings can be used for home purchases, home repairs, education, starting a business and transportation. Institute officials said Iowa has a growing population of refugees from Bosnia, the Sudan and Somalia.
"It's important to help people get off to a good start in a new country," Grassley said. "This program puts new Iowans on a solid path to the high quality of life we enjoy in our state."