Update on Final 2019-20 State Budget
Early Monday morning, the final bills of the 2019-20 New York State Budget were passed in both the Senate and Assembly. The bills have since been delivered to Governor Cuomo, and his action is due by Fri., April 12th.
On Sat., March 30th, LeadingAge NY sent members a preliminary final budget update, which included our analysis of the most relevant budget bill, Health and Mental Hygiene (HMH), and the other bills that had been printed at that time. Please refer to that document for an initial synopsis of the final budget as it relates to long term care. LeadingAge NY policy staff is now reviewing the final budget in its entirety and will be issuing a comprehensive analysis this Thurs., April 4th.
As the budget portion of session winds to a close, LeadingAge NY is already looking ahead to the rest of the legislative session. While we are pleased to see that prevailing wage was not included in the final budget, we know that this issue remains a priority for the Legislature, and they are not inclined to exempt non-profits unless they have less than $1 million in revenue. It is important that we keep up the pressure and help our lawmakers understand the full impact of this legislation.
A.1261 (Bronson)/S.1947 (Ramos) is the prevailing wage bill that will potentially be passed in the Legislature. Please call your lawmakers and explain how the increased cost of capital projects would impact seniors on a fixed income. It may help to explain your community’s need for your upcoming project/capital improvement and that this legislation would negate the assistance that your public grant, etc. provides. Click here to find your legislators’ contact information and here for LeadingAge NY’s prevailing wage memo of opposition.
Thank you, and keep an eye out for our comprehensive budget memo on Thurs., April 4th.