For 152 years, Schuyler Center has been advancing data-driven, effective, public policy to create a more just, equitable New York, in which all residents thrive. The policies and investments we champion are those proven to prevent children and families from experiencing the hardships of poverty, ill-health, food insecurity and other challenges; policies that stand to transform the public systems that serve and support the well-being of New York’s children, families, and communities over the long-term. By those measures, this budget is disappointing, with nearly all of the potentially transformative investments falling out during budget negotiations.
A handful of new investments directed to supporting children and families experiencing poverty are time-limited and not designed with the intention of building toward a significant, sustained reduction in child and family poverty.
This budget cuts funding for the child care workforce, threatening to worsen the state’s already severe child care workforce shortage and capacity shortfall. It does not transform New York’s child welfare system to better support families. And it does not make New York a more affordable place to raise a family.
Failure to invest in policies that are proven to uplift children and families is not just a failure within a budget bill. There are real consequences. These decisions will be felt by the family whose child care program closes due to staff shortages. They will be felt by the child who cannot buy school lunch, by the young person exiting foster care who cannot afford rent, and by the parent struggling to afford the cost of living in New York State.
There are important bright spots. Chief among them: the inclusion of continuous Medicaid and Child Health Plus eligibility for children aged 0-6. Forty-five percent of New York children are covered by Medicaid and Child Health Plus. Eliminating the requirement for the youngest New Yorkers to re-enroll every year will help ensure children’s access to health services in the most critical years of their development. In addition, a 5% rate increase for Early Intervention providers may help stem the systemwide exodus of providers, which has resulted in gaps in services for young children experiencing developmental delays and disabilities.
We celebrate the budget’s addition of state funds to the state child care assistance program to both fill the hole left by the end of federal pandemic funds, and to expand the program. Also welcome is a small – but important – child care subsidy rate hike for providers offering care during evening, early morning, and weekend hours (known as non-traditional hours), and those serving children experiencing homelessness, as well as an increase in funding for continuing a small pilot project to provide child care assistance to families barred by federal rules from accessing child care assistance due to immigration status, or because they work episodic hours.
Schuyler Center’s assessments around specific policy goals are outlined below.
Goal 1: Child Poverty Reduction — Reduce child poverty and racial inequity, starting by ensuring tax credits, housing, and nutritional supports reach all families, no matter where they were born.
Does the FY 2025 New York State budget meet this goal?
No. The final State budget falls short for low-income families. The budget fails to permanently expand New York’s child tax credit or ensure the lowest income children receive the maximum credit; provide housing supports for low-income New Yorkers; or fund statewide universal school meals.
The budget includes a one-time supplemental payment of the Empire State Child Credit that will provide a boost to New York’s low- and middle-income families this fall. While the supplement’s structure is designed to be progressive, it still leaves the lowest-income families out of the full credit and creates significant cliffs as family income rises.
With a nod to extremely high poverty rates in three upstate cities, the Governor and Legislature agreed to a one-time distribution of $50 million to address poverty in Buffalo, Rochester, and Syracuse.
Too many children and families across the state experience the day-to-day hardships of poverty –struggling to afford rent, food, and daily needs. That is a policy choice, and it was made once again in this budget. The clock is ticking on upholding New York’s commitment to reducing child poverty statewide by 50% by 2033. Another year is gone.
Statement from the New York Can End Child Poverty coalition.
Goal 2: Child Care — Make a substantial and sustained investment in New York’s child care workforce and extend the promise of care to all children in our state.
Does the FY 2025 New York State budget meet this goal?
No. This budget includes a reduced investment in the child care workforce compared to last year – a workforce overwhelmingly composed of women- specifically women of color and immigrant women, a workforce that earns less than 96% of other occupations. These cuts come at a moment when child care programs are already operating under capacity, even while carrying waitlists, because of workforce shortages due to low wages.
This budget also missed the opportunity to ensure that parents who work variable hours in retail, the trades, the gig economy, and food service can access child care by ending the State’s practice of tying child care assistance to caretakers’ exact hours of work—known as decoupling. Legislation to end this practice—which has disproportionately kept low-income, immigrant, and Black and brown New York families from accessing child care assistance—was passed by the Legislature last year and vetoed by the Governor, with instructions for the Legislature to take the issue up in budget negotiations. While the Legislature included this proposal in both one-house budgets, it was removed during final negotiations.
Empire State Campaign for Child Care Statement on the Final Enacted 2024-2025 New York State Budget
Goal 3: Children’s Health — Expand and increase investment in child and family health.
Does the FY 2025 New York State budget meet this goal?
Yes. The final state budget includes authority to seek federal approval for New York to ensure eligible children remain enrolled from birth to age 6 in Medicaid and Child Health Plus (CHP) health coverage — programs which provide no-cost or low-cost health coverage for eligible children.
Continuous health coverage will ensure that the youngest children on Medicaid receive health care during this crucial period of development.
A 5% rate increase for Early Intervention providers, together with a commitment to a 4% rate increase for services in rural and underserved communities, may help stem the systemwide exodus of providers, which has resulted in gaps in services for young children experiencing developmental delays and disabilities.
Goal 4: Child Welfare — Transform the child welfare system by investing in policies that foster transparency and accountability, prevent system-involvement and unnecessary, harmful family separations, reduce institutional placements, and support child, family, and community wellbeing.
Does the FY 2025 New York State budget meet this goal?
No. The final state budget took two small steps towards better supporting young people and families involved in the child welfare system: first, the Foster Youth College Success Initiative (FYCSI) is funded at $121,000 more than last year at $8.3 million, still below the $10 million needed to robustly fund each eligible student. Second, human services programs received a 2.84% COLA, which requires a minimum 1.7% targeted salary increase. This is less than the 3.2% needed to keep up with inflation and leaves out some human services workers (like those working in Preventive Services).
Missing are long overdue investments in Preventive Services and Attorneys for the Child that would strengthen children and families.
Next Steps Toward Investments that Support the Well-Being of New York’s Children and Families
In the two months left of legislative session, we will be working hard to secure passage of a number of laws designed to make the child welfare, child care, and health systems better serve and support families, in a manner that is more just and equitable.
Schuyler Center’s 2024 End of Session Priorities.
We will also be working with state partners to ensure laws are faithfully implemented and that investments committed in prior years are directed properly. A chief area of focus will be to ensure state leaders are on track to fully attain goals set by the Child Poverty Reduction Act, which committed the state to cutting child poverty in half in a decade with attention to racial equity. We celebrated that law not only for its bold vision, but also because it calls for an advisory council guided by data and evidence to make truly transformative – and lasting – policy recommendations. To date, the recommendations of the council have been largely sidelined. We hope and expect that to change.
Healthy children and supported families are the foundation of a thriving society—these are the investments that pay off for everyone, now and for generations to come. We will continue working for transformative policies that will create a New York State that supports strong families, thriving children, and vibrant communities.
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