NYSAC UPDATE
Legislative Team Update on the Enacted Budget & Post-Budget Review By Ryan Gregoire, NYSAC Legislative Director
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his year’s state budget was enacted in a time of historic abundance in Albany. The state had received significant inflows of aid from the federal government and personal income tax receipts – the largest revenue source for the state were 18.7 percent higher than last year's enacted state budget. Medicaid and education spending continue to be the two largest spending categories in New York. This year was no exception to that rule. In fact, Medicaid spending increased by 13.6 percent year-over-year. This program, which now totals $27.7 billion, continues to grow at an unprecedented rate—an alarming trend that we all must be cognizant of. The most significant victories for counties in the SFY 2023 State Budget can be found in the continuation of the cap on the local share of Medicaid, extension of local home rule revenue authority and our successful campaign to Keep Local Taxes Local by eliminating the diversion of sales tax to pay for the distressed hospital fund and the AIM-related payments program. Counties also saw an increase to the Community College funding floor to 100 percent of prior year funding, up from the 98 percent floor enacted in FY 2022, an expansion of broadband services and repeal of the DOT Right-of-Way Tax, and increase in Article 6 public health funding, authorization for fire departments to bill Medicaid for EMS Services, and increased funding for local Veterans’ Service Agencies and expansion of the Joseph P. Dwyer Peer-to-Peer Veterans’ Support Program statewide. For complete analysis of the county impact of the SFY 2023 State budget, visit www.nysac.org/nysbudget. The post-budget legislative session consisted of 21 legislative session days, 6 days less than last year, due primarily to the fact that this year is an election year for all 213 members of the State Legislature. Like the previous two years, the State Legislature convened in a hybrid format. Initially, the public was barred access from the Capitol and Legislative Office Building; however, the buildings
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NYSAC News | Summer 2022
did re-open in March, and the post-budget period, ushering in return to semi-normal advocacy efforts. NYSAC’s advocacy work is guided by the policy resolutions which are adopted by the NYSAC standing committees twice per year, during the Legislative Conference and again at the Fall Seminar. To help communicate these priorities to legislators, staff and other key stakeholders, the NYSAC legislative team developed a brand new 2022 Legislative Program which was met with much appreciation and support from state lawmakers and county officials, and a 2022 Post-Budget Legislative Program, building off of the new design created earlier this year. Both of these documents can be viewed at www.nysac.org/advocacy. We further narrowed our focus to a few top post-budget priorities as the legislative session neared conclusion in early June, including: •
Reform of Pre-Trial Competency Restoration,
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Permanency of County Sales Tax,
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Shared Services Reform, and
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Finalization of the ACA eFMAP Federal Pass-Thru to Counties.
