Friend,

Anyone who has ever managed a household knows just how important a budget is to ensure as many needs as possible are met.

When it comes to our state budget, it’s not just about what we choose to pay for: it’s a reflection of our moral values, a vision of our priorities and goals for our state’s future. And though no state budget is ever truly perfect, and while there were some items in this year’s budget I wasn’t super thrilled about, overall I am proud of the steps we took with this year’s budget to move New York towards a future where we invest in our communities, and recognize that we must tend to the bonds that keep us together.

I am especially proud to have fought hard for — and won — more funding for CUNY. We won over $200 million in operating costs and $1 billion in capital funding for CUNY: the largest investment in CUNY in a decade. This victory belongs to all of you who shared your CUNY stories, marched with us, rallied with us, showed off your bumper stickers, and more — thank you. There’s more to do to truly win a New Deal for CUNY, but this is an important start, one that begins to reverse decades of disinvestment and austerity. We will keep fighting for working and middle class New Yorkers who deserve affordable quality higher education!

Our budget this year also includes crucial investments for New Yorkers who are struggling to make ends meet:

$1.1 billion for COVID related rental assistance for tenants and landlords
$250 million for those in utility arrears
an income tax cut for working- and middle-class New Yorkers, benefiting 80% of our district’s residents, and
financial assistance for parents with the supplemental Empire State child tax credit.

Two years on from the worst of the pandemic that ravaged our city, in this year’s budget we honored the workers who cared for the sickest among us, with $1.2 billion going towards much overdue raises to frontline healthcare workers.

The budget also reverses years of divestment from crucial health and mental health services by:

Increasing capacity to treat severe mental illness by funding 1,000 new psychiatric beds,
Ensure adequate staffing at state-operated psychiatric centers,
Tackling the opioid crisis with $184 million to provide support to municipalities and ensure oversight of spending by the Opioid Advisory Board, and
Funding the 9-8-8 suicide prevention hotline.

We also prioritized investments to plan for the New York of tomorrow with:

$1 billion to increase eligibility for child care vouchers,
and more than $5 billion to green energy and climate change mitigation efforts.

Lastly, this year’s budget took steps to improve public safety and protect our most vulnerable neighbors, including:

$227 million for law enforcement and community-based gun violence prevention efforts
Modifications to bail laws to improve judicial accountability, facilitate easier prosecution of gun crimes, clarify that certain repeat offenses may be bail eligible, and allow judges to consider if crimes caused serious harm to individuals when making bail determinations,
An extension of Kendra’s Law which allows for court-ordered outpatient treatment for individuals with severe mental illness, and
$20 million to support AAPI organizations combating hate and bias crimes.

Click here to read more about what’s in this year’s budget.

Our budget is a reflection of what kind of New York is possible. I believe in a New York that is fairer, more just, and more affordable for all of us. As we continue with the rest of the legislative session, that is exactly what I am going to continue fighting for.

Yours,