Senate’s One-House Budget Proposal Contains Historic Funding for Southern Tier

By New York State Senator Lea Webb

Last week, I proudly voted yes on the New York Senate’s one-house budget proposal for the 2023-2024 scal year. is is my rst budget season in Albany and I am happy to report that my colleagues and I have put forth a proposal that centers the needs of New Yorkers in equitable ways, especially our most vulnerable and underserved communities. It is a major step in addressing the ongoing economic hardships across the state a er more than two years of this pandemic, with historic investment in our workforce, infrastructure, and working families.

I am especially proud of the work we have done to support students and teachers in our budget proposal by nally ful lling our commitment to the full funding of the Foundation Aid formula. is decadesin-the-making e ort to provide critical operating dollars to public schools across the state, especially in areas such as the Southern Tier, is way overdue. Over the past few months, I have met with educators from our district and have listened to their stories about the signi cant struggles facing our schools. A recurring theme in these conversations is the widespread food insecurity facing our families, an issue that was exacerbated when federal meal waivers expired in June of 2022 following two full years of free school breakfast and lunch for all students during the pandemic.

Student hunger did not expire with the end of these waivers. In February, I met with En eld Elementary School Principal Keith Harrington and Associate Principal Aileen Grainger, who traveled to Albany to lobby on behalf of their students, rallying to make sure state legislators heard the call that children cannot learn and thrive if they are hungry. Rural and farm communities like En eld o en face higher food insecurity rates than urban areas, according to USDA data, and these rates are even higher for people of color living in rural communities.

To address the crisis of food insecurity in our schools, my Senate colleagues and I fought to include funding for Healthy School Meals for All at $280 million, a proposal that would provide free meals for all students regardless of income. is program is critical for children living in the many households across New York that do not meet the guidelines for free or reduced school meals. For example, a family of four making just $51,400 would not qualify for free lunch under the current income guidelines. We must do better for our working families.

Not only would funding Healthy Meals for All help to feed our students, it would also save families an estimated $140 per child in grocery spending each month. Our Senate one-house budget also puts families rst by making big investments in the childcare sector. We’ve increased access to childcare with a proposed $623 million to expand eligibility up to 103 percent of the State median income level in 2023. And to strengthen this critical industry, we have included $500 million for the Workforce Retention Grant program, which will provide up to $12,000 in salary enhancements to child care workers employed at a childcare facility that serves families receiving subsidized child care.

Additionally, I am ghting to expand the Empire State Child Tax Credit to include children under four and to increase the minimum wage and so that it is indexed to in ation, both critical supports to strengthen families across the Southern Tier.

As a former municipal o cial, I also know how critical it is that our state budget supports our local governments. We have increased the funding that goes directly to municipalities to help their operations by almost 30 percent in our budget proposal. We will deliver muchneeded funding to support our road and bridges, adding hundreds of millions of dollars over what the Governor proposed to support needed repairs and help with extreme weather. And we have provided for a record increase in Aid to Municipalities by adding $213 million to support small local governments across the state this year and would fund a task force to look at ways the state government can better support our city, town and villages.

I have listened to the concerns of our county leaders over the Governor’s pro-

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