WCA eBulletin #14 – 2021-22 New York State Budget Wins and Outcomes!

2021-22 New York State Budget Wins and Outcomes!

Thank You for reaching out to State leaders and representatives through our recent Advocacy Alert. 

The $212 billion New York State Budget for FY 2021-2022 passed and included several key outcomes on our priority issues, in response to challenges created by pandemic and longstanding challenges impacting Westchester’s children.

We also want to thank all elected officials who worked on the Budget and helped prioritize children and familiesPlease take a moment to thank them as they would love to hear from you.

See our key State Budget highlights below:

✔ Remote Learning

  • Improves data collection on broadband access and sets a maximum price of $15 per month for broadband for low-income families.
  • NYS Partners to launch ConnectED NY, an emergency fund to provide approximately 50,000 students in economically disadvantaged school districts with free internet access through June 2022.
  • Fully phase in the $4 billion in Foundation Aid owed to New York’s students and schools and increase funding for schools this year by $1.4 billion, with the remaining amount coming over the next three years.
  • Transfers the entirety of $13 billion federal education funds from the recent stimulus packages directly to schools.

✔ Youth Justice

  • Includes $250 million to support continued implementation of the Raise the Age initiative.
  • Closed two youth detention facilities.

✔ Early Childhood Supports and Child Care

  • $105 million expansion of universal pre-K statewide.
  • Maintains funding the Healthy Families early childhood Home Visiting program at $26.2 million.
  • Funds the Nurse-Family Partnership early childhood Home Visiting program at $4 million.
  • Includes $2.3 billion in federal child care funds to expand access, lower family co-pays, and support child care providers.
  • Enhances the Employer-Provided Child Care Credit to provide stronger incentives to employers to provide child care to their employees.

✔ Youth Development

  • Maintains the Youth Development Program (YDP) funding at $14.1 million 2020-21 levels.
  • Maintains the Advantage After School Program at $28 million and funds the Additional Advantage After School Program at $5 million.
  • Continues $24.3 million in funding for the Extended School Day program.
  • Includes $45 million for summer youth employment opportunities in the Summer Youth Employment Program.

✔ Child & Youth Homelessness

  • Includes $2.4 billion of dollars for a rent relief program supported by federal and state aid that is crucial to maintain family housing stability.
  • Maintains $128 million for the Homeless Housing and Assistance Program.
  • Continues the $20 billion, comprehensive five-year investment to create or preserve over 100,000 units of affordable housing and create 6,000 new units of supportive housing, with an additional $250 million included this year.

 ✔ Child Welfare

  • Maintains $383 million for the Foster Care Block Grant.
  • Maintains $610 million for preventive, protective, independent living, adoption, and aftercare services, and continues state reimbursement at 62%.
  • Includes $11.8 million to provide post-adoption services, post-guardianship services, and services to support and sustain positive permanent outcomes for children who otherwise might enter into foster care.
  • Increases funding for the Fostering Youth College Success Initiative (FYCSI) to $7.2 million.

 ✔ Additional Aid

  • Includes $2.1 billion dollars to support excluded frontline workers and immigrant communities across the state who have been excluded from federal relief and entitlement programs.

 

This is an initial update of how the State Budget addressed our priority issues. There is room for improvement in an expansion of the Empire State Child Tax Credit to address poverty and close the gap for children in immigrant families that the American Rescue Plan Act’s child tax credit reforms leave behind. Additionally, there is a continued need for statewide support of a broader youth justice agenda for older youth, as well as expanded early childhood supports and home visiting.

We will continue our work to ensure children and families are kept at the top of the public agenda.  Look out for more alerts if opportunities for progress arise before the end of the State legislative session in June.  Pass on this message  to anyone who would like to support future WCA Advocacy Alerts.

They can also join our mailing list to learn more.