| Beginning OuR Descent Governor’s Cuts Echo More to Come |
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| Saturday, 31 October 2009 16:29 |
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It’s only the beginning!
And that is only this year. As you can see in the chart at right, official – and seemingly conservative – estimates for future year deficits are staggering: a modest $4.6 billion in 2011 and then, as the federal stimulus money runs out, $13.3 billion in 2012 and $18.2 billion in 2013. None of this bodes well for human service programs, particularly in light of the Governor’s refusal to consider taxes as a vehicle for closing the gap. “I will not tolerate taxes in any plan,” he stated in announcing his latest proposals for cuts. The largest component of the Governor’s proposal is a $1.3 billion across the board reduction in local assistance spending, which includes many health and human service programs as well as aid to education and other local government assistance. With some exceptions, these cuts represent a 10% across the board reduction in all remaining fiscal year spending. School Aid cuts, totaling $480 million, were limited to 4.5% of remaining fiscal year spending. Cuts in the area of health and mental hygiene totaled $470 million. In a separate action, the Governor proposed increasing the targets for fraud recoveries by the Office of the Medicaid Inspector General by $150 million. Budget documents cited total social services cuts of $28 million. “Imagine how it feels for me, who has been an advocate for resources in all these areas, to be proposing these reductions,” said the Governor. “The pain is indescribable. It is the only way to keep this state from going into default.” Some human service advocates expressed immediate concern over the impact of the proposed cuts. “The Federation of Protestant Welfare Agencies (FPWA) is deeply disturbed about the impact of continuing budget cuts on vital services for New York’s struggling families,” said Fatima Goldman, Executive Director of FPWA. “We realize that multiple rounds of budget cuts are part of New York State and City’s efforts to responsibly address a worsening economy and growing budget deficits. However, these government cuts disproportionately impact children and families who are increasingly vulnerable during these difficult economic times.” (For FPWA’s full response, see “Do Not Balance the Budget on the Backs of New York’s Neediest”, page 5.) “Human service not-for-profits already find themselves in a fragile position due to the severe reductions in government and private funding in the last two years,” said Michael Stoller, Executive Director of the Human Services Council of New York City. The Governor’s proposals require legislative approval. As we went to press, the Senate and Assembly had scheduled hearings to allow the public to comment on the Governor’s proposed cuts. Specific cuts to individual state agencies and programs in the current fiscal year included the following: • Health Department -- $43 million: Hunger Prevention and Nutrition Assistance Program (HPNAP) which provides food and other resources for food pantries and soup kitchens is being reduced by $958,000. Community Service Providers (CSPs) and AIDS prevention and education programs are being cut by $696,000 and $417,000 respectively. • Office for the Aging -- $5.4 million: Expanded In-Home Services for the Elderly (EISEP) is being cut $2.252 million while Community Services for the Elderly is being cut by $765,000. • OASAS -- $16 million: Outpatient services and residential services are being cut by approximately $5 million each, while prevention programs will see a $2.5 million cut. • Office of Mental Health -- $47 million: Proposals include cuts of approximately $37 million in the areas of adult residential and non-residential services plus cuts of 10 million or more for children and youth services. • OMRDD -- $65 million: The largest portion of the cuts includes $47 million in Medicaid costs for residential and day service programs operated by not-for-profits. • OCFS -- $10.6 million: The largest cuts are $2.1 million in Youth Development and Delinquency Program (YDDP)/Special Delinquency Prevention Program (SDPP). $1.9 million from the Advantage After School Program and $1.2 million from home visiting. Cuts to funding for the Human Services COLA program were included in each of these agency budgets. A full list of the proposed cuts by program is available at: http://www.nynp.biz/Oct09DRP_LocalAssistanceReductions.pdf.
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On October 15th, Governor Paterson outlined a two-year, $5 billion Deficit Reduction Plan designed to close a $3 billion budget gap in the state’s current fiscal year, with $2 billion recurring in FY2011 to start the process of addressing future deficits. 
The State’s already abysmal fiscal situation appears to be deteriorating right in front of our eyes. The current year FY2010 budget, theoretically in balance on April 1st, was found to be $2.1 billion short by July 30th. While Paterson’s $3 billion gap-closing measure should provide breathing room, State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli is suggesting the real target should be $4 billion. 
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