Alliance First Look Response to Senate and Assembly One-House Budget Proposals
The Alliance for Rights and Recovery is carefully reviewing the New York State Senate and Assembly one-house budget proposals released last night as the state enters the final phase of negotiations ahead of the April 1 budget deadline. While the process is still ongoing, we are encouraged to see several provisions in both houses that reflect the continued advocacy of people with lived experience, families, providers, and community leaders across New York.
The Alliance will continue to push for the full adoption of our advocacy priorities, which focus on strengthening the mental health and substance use service system, supporting the workforce, expanding community-based services, and advancing recovery and human rights for all New Yorkers. These priorities were outlined in our Legislative Day materials and reflect the urgent needs of the communities we serve.
There are several promising elements in the one-house proposals.
Both the Senate and Assembly included a 4 percent temporary inflationary increase for health and human services providers, recognizing the ongoing workforce and operating cost crisis facing community-based agencies. While this is an encouraging step, we must ensure this increase is included in the final budget to ensure agencies and the workforce are able to withstand this year’s rising costs.
The Assembly one-house budget includes an additional $100 million for Raise the Age, expanding support to include New York City and strengthening youth justice services.
We are incredibly thankful to the Senate for including $15 million for Daniel’s Law crisis response programs. The Alliance, Daniel’s Law Coalition, and our partners will continue to push for this funding, as well as funding for the Behavioral Health Crisis Technical Assistance Center, to be included in the final budget so that more New Yorkers will receive the appropriate response when experiencing a crisis.
The Senate one-house budget includes several other important provisions, including:
- Protecting the Raise the Age law and designating $50 million of the $250 million allocation for a Youth Justice Innovation Fund
- Restoration of funding for Adult Home Advocacy programs
- Support for the Governor’s proposal to allow co-licensure of OMH and OASAS programs, improving access to integrated mental health and substance use treatment
- $2.5 million for the Recovery Ready Workplace Act (S.9145)
- $3 million for the Correctional Association of New York to strengthen oversight of prison conditions
As budget negotiations continue, the Alliance will remain focused on ensuring that final budget decisions strengthen community-based services, support the workforce, expand housing and crisis response programs, and improve access to support for people with mental health and substance use challenges.
Advocacy will be critical in the coming weeks. The Alliance will provide multiple opportunities for people across the state to get involved as negotiations intensify. This includes our Week of Action from March 9 through March 13, which will feature:
- A statewide social media campaign amplifying our policy priorities
- Action days encouraging advocates to contact their legislators
- In-district meetings with lawmakers coordinated by our Regional Coordinators
We encourage advocates, providers, and community members to stay engaged and help ensure lawmakers continue to hear directly from the people most affected by these decisions.
More information will be shared soon, including additional opportunities to participate.
The Alliance will continue reviewing the details of the one-house budgets and will provide further updates and analysis as negotiations move forward.
In Solidarity,
Harvey Rosenthal, Chief Executive Officer
Luke Sikinyi, Vice President of Public Policy
Alliance for Rights and Recovery