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Governor Andrew Cuomo laid out a series of policy priorities and planned new initiatives in his State of the State speech yesterday. In addition to proposing a wide range of economic development projects, the Governor called for balancing the remaining $2.2 billion FY2013 budget deficit without implementing any additional new taxes or fees. He promised to re-invent the way the State conducts much of its business and touched on a number of specific human service issues which were generally praised by advocates and providers.
“We embrace the Governor’s sentiments regarding the importance of getting New Yorkers back to work and hope there is a real recognition during the budget negotiation process of the role human services play in removing barriers to work,” said Michael Stoller, Executive Director of the Human Services Council (HSC). “Human services help people get and keep jobs; they stabilize families by securing food, healthcare, housing, afterschool, child and elder care, and more. These services also promote work readiness through literacy programs, employment and training services, resume and job search assistance and other career preparation approaches."
At the same time, however, advocates noted that human service programs and providers have already been weakened by significant cuts in prior year budgets. “Unfortunately, our state has divested from many of these programs in recent years despite a clear increase in need,” said Stoller. “Since Fiscal Year (FY) 2011 human services have been cut at the state level by over $800 million (not including cuts to Medicaid impacting the sector). Local cuts across the state have also had a major impact on funds available to human services. New York City cut human services by $300 million in last year’s budget and has since cut another $114 million in FY2012. Another $60 million in City cuts is already planned for FY2013.”
“We have lost nearly 30,000 human service jobs as a result of the state cuts alone,” added Allison Sesso, Deputy Executive Director at HSC. “We must take every measure to avoid further cuts to these critical services, which have the double benefit of providing direct employment and acting as job supports. The Governor and Legislature took an important first step a few weeks ago by adopting a new tax package that moves our tax system in a more progressive direction, but they can’t stop there. Additional measures to raise revenues and address the wealth gap must be taken. Corporate tax loophole closures and cost-saving measures, such as streamlining nonprofit contracting approaches, should be considered to maintain funding to vital human services.”
The Governor drew strong support for his proposals to improve access to Food Stamp programs. “Statewide, 1 in 6 children live in homes without enough food on the table,” he said. “Yet 30 percent of New Yorkers eligible for food stamps — over 1.4 million people — do not receive them, leaving over $1 billion in federal funds unclaimed every year. We must increase participation in the food stamp program, remove barriers to participation, and eliminate the stigma associated with this program. And we must stop fingerprinting for food. No child should go hungry in the great State of New York and we will do all that we can to prevent it."
“The Governor’s written statement was powerful enough, but the words he spoke went even farther, and were delivered with quite an emotional wallop,” said Joel Berg, Executive Director of the New York City Coalition Against Hunger. “As I and our staff listened to a radio broadcast of the speech, we broke out into loud cheers shed tears of joy. We are extraordinarily grateful for the Governor’s bold pledge to make child hunger in New York State ancient history. We look forward to working with him to achieve that goal as rapidly as possible…. We are particularly pleased that the Governor called for a plan to increase participation in the Food Stamp Program and to eliminate the practice of finger imaging law-abiding applicants, which is currently in place only in New York City and Arizona.”
Advocates expressed some concerns that the Governor offered little new information on plans for the ongoing restructuring of the State’s Medicaid system. “We are fresh off the heels of the Medicaid Redesign process, which resulted in numerous, extensive recommendations on making major improvements and smart investments in New York’s Medicaid program,” said Medicaid Matters New York. “The Governor did not highlight Medicaid in his State of the State address, so not much is yet known about what to expect this year for the state’s public insurance program on which five million New Yorkers rely. As advocates for those New Yorkers, we are hopeful the Governor’s 2012-2013 Budget will refrain from drastic cuts to the program and will instead demonstrate a commitment to using Medicaid savings for targeted investments that will ensure equitable access to services for all.
“Cuts to the program could endanger the ambitious goals of Medicaid Redesign,” the group continued. “The Executive Budget must protect the Medicaid program, paying particular attention to how every Medicaid budget action could impact on people and the accessible providers in the community that serve them.”
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