CAMBA today released the following statement on behalf of CAMBA President & CEO Joanne Oplustil regarding Friday’s restorations made to the City’s education budget: “We thank Mayor Adams, Speaker Adams, Council Education Committee Chair Rita Joseph, and all our dedicated City Council Members for having the backs of our young people and working to ensure they have a future. Friday’s $31 million restoration to the City’s education budget is tremendous news for the hundreds of young people CAMBA serves each year through its Learning To Work program. “Over the past decade, CAMBA’s LTW progra ..read more

AARP New York State Director Beth Finkel issued the following statement today on the New York State Legislature’s expected passage of the aid to localities bill in the state budget for the 2024-2025 fiscal year: “People age 65 and over are the fastest-growing segment of New York State’s population (3.5 million and counting), but you wouldn’t know it from the State Office for the Aging (SOFA) budget expected to be approved by the Legislature. Governor Kathy Hochul, Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie and Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins have let older New Yorkers down, plain and simple, by ign ..read more

StudentsFirstNY thanked Governor Hochul, Mayor Adams and the State Legislature today for standing with New York City public school students by agreeing to extend mayoral accountability. Earlier this month, StudentsFirstNY announced a seven-figure public campaign to encourage Albany to extend mayoral accountability this year. You can watch StudentsFirstNY’s ad here. This week, over 100 parents and students rallied in Albany to demand mayoral accountability appear in the final budget agreement. In March, StudentsFirstNY released “Dysfunction Junction: A History of NYC Schools Before Mayoral Acc ..read more

“The passage of crucial Tier 6 pension reforms in the state budget is the most significant improvement for our public servants in more than 20 years. It marks a momentous stride towards restoring fairness and retaining invaluable public sector workers. New Yorkers rely on vital public services, which are only as dependable as the committed and dedicated public workers who provide them. From healthcare to education, emergency response to infrastructure maintenance, these services are the backbone of our communities, ensuring the safety, well-being, and prosperity of all New Yorkers. The enactm ..read more

New York State is first once again. When Governor Hochul signs the FY25 state budget, it will include the first in the nation funding to help revitalize newsroom through an employment tax credit. The foundation of the Local Journalism Sustainability Act (S.625-Hoylman-Sigal/A.2958-Woerner) has been included in the state budget as the Newspaper and Broadcast Media Jobs Program. The final budget language provides for a $30 million tax credit based on 50 percent of the first $50,000 of a journalist’s salary for the next three years. Publishers will only be able to use these employment tax credit ..read more

“Following months of rallies, marches, community forums, intense media coverage, and public outcry in response to the SUNY chancellor’s proposed plan to close SUNY Downstate University Hospital, the Legislature and the governor have responded. It is clear that Downstate is a vital resource to the community and must remain open. “As the New York state budget is finalized, we recognize and appreciate the crucial funding allocated to support the hospital and the 400,000 patients it serves annually—while it continues to offer a full array of diverse, vital services. “Another important detail incl ..read more

The final budget agreement represents a significant improvement from Governor Hochul’s initial proposal—which contained over $1 billion in Medicaid cuts—and highlights the immense importance of our ongoing Medicaid Equity campaign. The New York State Legislature clearly heard the voices of their constituents, tens of thousands of whom made calls, wrote letters, and told their healthcare stories in the halls of our state Capitol and on the airwaves. This budget represents a meaningful first step towards reducing and ultimately eliminating the Medicaid coverage gap. Thanks to the advocacy of Sp ..read more

William Van Slyke, Former HANYS, NYSDOH Exec, Joins Albany’s Premier Health Care and Human Services-Only Lobby and Consulting Firm CHC Also Welcomes New Legislative Associate Tristen Carson (Albany, New York) – Capital Health Consultants LLC (CHC) today announced the addition of two new staff members. Joining CHC is former New York State Department of Health and Healthcare Association of New York State (HANYS) executive William Van Slyke. An Albany veteran, Van Slyke has more than 25 years of experience in developing innovative advocacy and policy making strategies for New York’s premier heal ..read more

Dear Governor Hochul, Leader Stewart-Cousins and Speaker Heastie: On behalf of a broad group of providers and community-based organizations addressing social care needs, we are writing to urge the inclusion of funding for the Medicaid Quality Incentive Program in the final FY25 State Budget. The Medicaid Quality Incentive Program has been a vital resource in improving health outcomes for more than 5 million New Yorkers enrolled in Medicaid, helping to incentivize efforts aimed at addressing the core causes of health disparities and advancing the quality – and equity – of care for underserved ..read more

NEW YORK–StudentsFirstNY today joined legislators and over 100 public school parents to rally in the Capitol for an extension of mayoral accountability of New York City schools. Parents from across the city spoke movingly about the increased role their voices play in decision making under the current system, and urged Albany not to take schools back to the failed policies of the School Board era. Early this month, StudentsFirst announced a seven-figure public campaign to encourage Albany to extend mayoral accountability this year. The group will run ads, mobilize concerned parents at rallies ..read more