Summary of New York State Enacted Budget

Transcription

1 70 West 36 th Street, Fifth Floor, New York, NY Tel: Fax: Summary of New York State Enacted Budget Table of Contents Page # TANF Funding Commitments 3 Office of Children and Family Services (OCFS) 4 State Education Department 5 Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance (OTDA) 6 Division of Housing and Community Renewal (HCR) 6 State Office for the Aging (SOFA) 7,8 Department of State (DOS) 8 Introduction On April 1, 2014 Governor Andrew Cuomo signed the New York State FY budget into law. The $137.9 billion budget, $142.8 billion when Extraordinary Federal Aid is taken into account- Superstorm Sandy Aid and Federal Affordable Care Act assistance- is an increase of just over 1% relative to FY2014. The budget is the fourth consecutive budget completed on time and includes significant new funding commitments as well as $1.5 billion over three years in property and renters tax reductions. Notable funding expansions include $1.5 billion over five years for statewide universal pre-kindergarten, including $300 million for New York City in FY2015 alone. In addition, for the first time in six years, a partial $13 million COLA for human service contracts was included for certain direct care workers. The COLA is expected to be expanded in the following fiscal year. The budget also includes a $5 million expansion to the Community Services for the Elderly program as well as broadened eligibility criteria for the SCRIE and EPIC programs. Absent from the budget was the DREAM Act, increased funding for the Summer Youth Employment Program, or resources to accommodate the Common Core transition in adult education. Page 1 of 8

2 This summary is divided into 2 sections: The Temporary Assistance to Needy (TANF) Funding Commitments, and Agency Budgets: TANF TANF block grant funds cash aid for public assistance recipients. Historically, surplus funds from the TANF block grant have been used to support human service programs. As that surplus has diminished, funding commitments for many of these programs has been retracted. Page 3 lists the TANF funding commitments from the previous two fiscal years compared with the State s FY Enacted Budget. Agency Budgets This section reports budget actions in the State agencies from which UNH members most frequently obtain funding to deliver services: Office of Children and Family Services(OCFS). OCFS administers funding for settlement houses, child care, child welfare and several youth services funding streams including Advantage After-School, and the Youth Development Program as well as Title XX funding which is partially used in New York City to support senior centers. New York State Education Department (NYSED). NYSED administers school aid funding, Universal Pre-Kindergarten (UPK), Adult Literacy Education (ALE) and Extended School Day / Violence Prevention After-School. Homes and Community Renewal (HCR). HCR administers low- and moderate- income housing in New York, as well as the Homeless Housing and Assistance Program (HHAP). Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance (OTDA). OTDA administers funding for public assistance, homelessness prevention including Solutions to End Homelessness Program, Summer Youth Employment Program, citizenship services, and the Flexible Fund for Family Services (FFFS) which local social service districts can use to support a wide range of human services. Department of State (DOS). DOS administers the recently created Opportunity Centers, focused on provides legal assistance, case management and ESOL services for immigrants State Office for the Aging (SOFA). SOFA creates and funds policies, programs, and services focused on enabling older New Yorkers to remain as healthy and independent as possible for as long as possible. Page 2 of 8

3 TANF Funding Commitments Below is a list of programs relevant to UNH members that are, or were TANF funded, with their enacted budget levels in the FY , FY , and the Governor s Executive Budget level for the FY TANF Funding Initiative Commitments (Dollars in Thousands) PROGRAM Enacted Enacted Enacted Advantage Schools $500 $0 $500 Bridge $102 $0 $102 Career Pathways $750 $0 $1,000 Child Care CUNY/SUNY $334 $0 $0 Child Care Demonstration Projects $1,265 $0 $0 Child Care Subsidies $324,276 $394,967 $394,967 Displaced Homemakers $546 $0 $1,630,000 Educational Resources $250 $0 $0 Emergency Homeless $500 $0 $0 Flexible Fund for Family Services $964,000 $964,000 $964,000 Non-residential Domestic Violence $1,210 $0 $0 Nurse Family Partnership $2,000 $0 $0 Preventive Services $610 $0 $0 Settlement House* Summer Youth Employment Program $1,000 $25,000 $1,000 $25,000 $2,000 $27,500 Wage Subsidy $950 $0 $950 *In addition to these TANF funds, $450,000 was made available through OCFS as well Page 3 of 8

4 Office of Children and Family Services (OCFS) Settlement Houses The Enacted Budget added $2.45m in funding for settlement houses, $450,000 of which has been funded through OCFS and $2 million of which had been funded through OTDA. This represents an overall $1 million increase in funding. Child Care Block Grant The Enacted Budget increases child care subsidies by $55 million. $21 million was added by the Governor in the Executive Budget in order to defray the costs of increases in the market rate which mandates minimum payments for providers. The Executive budget invests an additional $34 million which the Assembly estimates will fund 4,500 additional slots. Allocations to specific social service districts will be determined by OCFS. Child Welfare Local Match The Executive Budget maintains the actual reimbursement rate for local spending on child welfare services at 62%, including preventive service programs. The rate remains as 65% in the statute, which would allow the state to return to the higher rate as the economy improves. Advantage After School The Enacted Budget maintains $17.7 million for Advantage After-School restoring a $500,000 cut proposed in the Executive Budget. Youth Development Program The Youth Development Program, formerly known as Youth Development Delinquency Prevention and Special Delinquency Prevention Program (YDDSP, SDPP), supports a variety of youth programs including New York City s Out of School Time (OST) After-School. The Executive Budget proposed $14.2 million-- a reduction of $1.3 million which the legislature has restored for the last two years. Runaway and Homeless Youth Program (RHYP) The Enacted Budget maintains $2.5 million in funding for runaway and homeless youth program. $450,000 $972 million $55 million increase 62% uncapped match rate for local spending; Same rate as prior year $17.7 million Level Funding $ 15.5 million Level Funding $2.5 million Level Funding Page 4 of 8

5 State Education Department (SED) Full Day Universal Pre-Kindergarten Expansion The Enacted Budget contains $340 million as part of a five year plan to invest $1.5 billion in Full Day Universal Pre-Kindergarten Expansion. $300 million is directed towards New York City and $40 million is for the rest of the State. After-School Expansion The Enacted Budget does not include funds specifically allocated for After-School Expansion. However, New York City s school aid allocation is increased by approximately $400 million. Language in the budget lists after-school expansion as an acceptable use of this investment and Mayor de Blasio has said he intends to move forward with his plan for a $190 million expansion of middle school Out of School Time Programs which would create 120,000 after-school slots. Adult Literacy Education The Enacted budget included a $300,000 expansion to ALE, as well as a rollover of $300,000 in unspent prior year funding. The budget did not include an expansion in resources to accommodate the transition to Common Core in adult education. This is the first year in which the GED will no longer be administered and replaced by the more rigorous Test Assessing Secondary Completion (TASC ). Extended School Day / Violence Prevention The Enacted Budget maintains $24.34 million for Extended Day School Violence Prevention, which is the same funding level as in FY Extended Learning Time The FY Budget invested $20 million in Extended Learning Time which has not yet been allocated. SED will have the opportunity to allocate these funds in FY $340 million $400 million School Aid Increase which can be partially used for Afterschool expansion $6.3 million + $300,000 carryover $300,000 increase $24.34 million $20 million Unspent prior year dollars Page 5 of 8

6 Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance (OTDA) Settlement Houses The Enacted Budget added $2.45m in funding for settlement houses, $450,000 of which has been funded through OCFS and $2 million of which had been funded through OTDA. This represents an overall $1 million increase in funding. Summer Youth Employment Program The Enacted Budget includes a $2.5m increase over FY This investment is intended to cover the increased cost of SYEP slots paid for with State dollars, as a result of the minimum wage increase from $7.25 to $8.00/hr. It does not cover the increase cost in all other SYEP slots- those funded by local or private dollars- and as a result, NYC s SYEP program will lose 2,750 jobs this summer. Homeless Housing Prevention Services Program (HHSP) Enacted Budget maintains level funding for HHSP at $30.3 million. HHSP funds the Solutions to End Homelessness Program, New York State Supportive Housing Program, and the Operational Support for AIDS Housing Program. Services in this block grant include several that in previous years were funded discretely including FEPS Application Preparation Assistance, Homelessness Intervention Program and Supplemental Homelessness Intervention Program. Homeless Housing Assistance Program The Enacted Budget includes a $30 million increase for Homeless Housing Assistance Program which funds supportive housing. $2.0 million $1.0 million increase $27.5 million $2.5 million increase $30.3 million $63 million $33 million increase Homes and Community Renewal (HCR) Housing Trust Fund The Enacted Budget increases funding by $12 million to $44.2 million. The Housing Trust Fund supports capital construction for supportive and affordable housing. $44.2 million $12 million increase Page 6 of 8

7 State Office for the Aging (SOFA) Community Services for the Elderly (CSE) The Enacted Budget effectively increases funding for CSE by $5 million from the previous year. CSE is a flexible funding source used by localities to operate community-based services like senior centers, transportation, and other supportive services. Expanded In-Home Services for the Elderly Program (EISEP) The Enacted Budget effectively maintains funding from the previous year. The program's intention is to help frail, low-income (not Medicaid eligible) older adults remain safely in their homes, without becoming impoverished due to the cost of care. Counties use the funding for care management and subsidized home care, as well as other in-home supportive services. The program uses a sliding fee scale for seniors who are able to contribute to their care. Wellness in Nutrition (WIN)(formerly SNAP) Plus Outreach The Enacted Budget effectively maintains the previous year s WIN funding. WIN is primarily used for home-delivered meals for frail seniors who are unable to prepare meals for themselves. It also funds some congregate meals in senior centers and provides limited funding for supportive services and case management. Cost of Living Adjustments (COLA) to EISEP, CSE, and SNAP The Executive Budget eliminated the previous year s COLA of $14.7 million and reallocated those funds to the base allocations of each program. A new small partial COLA of $930,000 was provided in the Enacted Budget for FY Naturally Recurring Retirement Communities (NORC) & Neighborhood Naturally Recurring Retirement Communities (NNORC) The Enacted Budget maintains funding at $2,027,500 for NORCs and $2,027,500 for NNORCs. NORCs and NNORCs allow seniors to age in place and to benefit from the proximity of their peers. Services for seniors are provided in a building, complex, or neighborhood. As NY moves away from a dependence on institutional care, NORCs and NNORCs fill an essential role in helping seniors remain in the community. Caregiver Resource Centers The Enacted Budget maintains funding for Caregiver Resource Centers. The Older Americans Act funds Caregiver Services through Title III E at $12,000,000, and the State provides $353,000 to local Area Agencies on Aging to operate this program. $25.3 million $5 million increase 1 $50.01 million 2 $27,326,000 3 $930,000 New partial COLA $2,027,500 $2,027,500 $12,353,000 1 The Enacted Budget included $15.3 million for CSE, plus a COLA of $4.98 million. In this year s Executive Budget, the COLA was eliminated and the funds were reallocated to the CSE base, effectively providing level funding. The additional $5 million increase was provided in the FY Enacted Budget. 2 EISEP funding for this year is effectively level after the COLA of $3.98 million was eliminated and reallocated to the EISEP base. 3 WIN funding for this year is effectively level after the COLA of $5.75 million was eliminated and reallocated to the WIN base; a separate $200,000 from the previous year dedicated to outreach was added to the base allocation with the language that up to $200,000 of the overall amount could be used for outreach by CSCS. Page 7 of 8

8 Social Adult Day Services (SADS) The Enacted Budget maintains the FY funding level of $1,072,000 for Social Adult Day Services. SADS provides a more structured and therapeutic environment for older adults for whom a busy senior center is not a good fit, but for whom a more tailored group setting can be beneficial. It also provides vital respite for working caregivers. Social Adult Day Training Funding to provide training and technical assistance to social adult day services programs with the aim of ensuring high quality services. Respite Care The Enacted Budget maintains the FY funding level of $656,000 for respite in FY Congregate Services Initiative (CSI) The Enacted Budget maintains the FY funding level of $403,000 for CSI. This funding is only half of the FY level of $806,000. This funding supports aging services provided in a group setting and is often used for transportation, case assistance, and special events. Transportation Funding The Enacted Budget maintains the FY funding level for transportation. This funding helps to combat social isolation and physical decline by connecting seniors with doctors, retailers, friends, and community services. Patient Rights and Advocacy Hotline The Enacted Budget increased the FY funding for the hotline by 100%. This is a full restoration of the level. Elder Abuse Education and Outreach The Enacted Budget maintains the FY funding level of $945,000 for Elder Abuse and Outreach. $200,000 of this funding is expressly for Lifespan s Education and Outreach. Title XX The federal Title XX allocation to New York State will be $100.2 million, of which $95.2 million will be directed to the local districts. Of the $95.2 million, $66 million is restricted to domestic violence services and adult protective services. The remainder, or $29.2 million, is left for local discretionary funding, $20.3 million of which goes to New York City and is used to support senior centers. This allocation is maintained from the previous year. $1,072,000 $122,500 $656,000 $403,000 $1,121,000 $63,000 $31,500 increase $945,000 $95.2 million Department of State (DOS) Opportunity Centers The Enacted Budget maintained level funding for the neighborhood Opportunity Center program, which provides legal assistance, case management and ESOL services for immigrants. $3.44 million Page 8 of 8