New York Helps Pave the Way: NY’s Immigrant Inclusive Policies
In localities and states across the U.S., advocates and legislators have been working together to invest in the collective health and well-being of immigrants. This year’s Policy wins have been significant as advocates, and legislators continued to fight back against federal attacks on immigrants, and COVID-19 exposed the already persistent racial disparities. A recent report from the National Immigration Law Center that outlines policy victories in the United States highlighted New York’s commitment to immigrants. Despite the lack of federal leadership in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and the deliberate exclusion of many immigrants from federal relief and economic [...]
Medicaid Cuts Would Put 554,000 Essential Workers in New York at Risk
October 14, 2020 Many of New York’s “essential workers,” people working in jobs deemed necessary throughout the COVID pandemic, rely on Medicaid for their own health care. They risk severe hardship if federal policymakers fail to provide appropriate increases in Medicaid funding or weaken protections for program enrollees, according to a new analysis from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. In New York State over half a million, 554,000, essential workers rely on Medicaid. The economic fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic led to a growing need for Medicaid health coverage while state revenues declined sharply. Some states have cut [...]
Congress Must Agree on COVID Relief Package in the Next Week
The coronavirus pandemic has hurt us all. It has harmed our physical and mental health and economic well-being. As of September 24, 2020, COVID-19 has sickened over 7.2 million Americans and killed more than 207,000. The pandemic has harmed our economy, causing large-scale business shutdowns, which were ordered to protect public health. Tens of millions of Americans lost their jobs and incomes because of the pandemic, resulting in record-high unemployment rates and a rising need for services in New York State and beyond. Initially, job losses were concentrated in the foodservice, retail, and health and social assistance industries. Still, now [...]
Robust Rental Assistance Needed to Protect Tenants
August 2020 Download the full brief Governor Cuomo has extended the state’s limited eviction moratorium until September 4, 2020 but the application window for the state’s $100 million COVID Rent Relief program closed on August 6, 2020. Many of New York State’s renters require assistance above and beyond the programs and protections currently in place. The COVID Rent Relief program has limitations. It will only provide up to four months of rental assistance for those earning below 80 percent of the area median income (AMI and it will only cover the difference between the household’s rent burden on March 1 [...]
Over 40% of New Yorkers Uncounted as Feds Call for Early Halt to 2020 Census
8/4/2020 On Monday, August 3, 2020, the Census Bureau issued a statement, confirming reports that it plans for all 2020 census counting efforts to be cut four weeks short of what was expected. This is the federal administration’s latest attempt to inject an element of chaos and intimidation into what should be a unifying and democratic process. In April, the Census Bureau asked all households to respond to its 10-question survey either online or by mail. For those who did not respond, there has been an extended time of following up over the phone, by mail, and by door knocking [...]
Second Round of Economic Impact Payments Needed
Millions of New Yorkers remain unemployed due to COVID-19. With federal assistance set to end in July, the situation is dire as these payments were used to cover basic essentials for workers and their families - and those who were excluded from CARES Act support and state unemployment assistance continue to struggle. The facts are stark. "Over 9.3 million New Yorkers—48 percent of the state’s population—received Economic Impact Payments (EIP) totaling over $15 billion by May 22, 2020. Undocumented immigrants, as well as married couples who file jointly but have mixed status, were excluded from receiving the EIP." Download the [...]
Unemployed Workers Set to Lose Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation
Unemployed New Yorkers are scheduled to receive their final Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation (FPUC) checks on July 26, 2020. FPUC was enacted as part of the CARES Act and the legislation set FPUC’s expiration for the end of July. The unemployment insurance (UI) expansions included in the CARES Act were quick and appropriate responses to the economic fallout of the coronavirus pandemic. The expansions were intended to help tens of millions of workers across the nation who were laid off due to mandatory business shutdowns ordered to protect public health The Retail and Accommodation and Food Service industries, which represent [...]
Federal Funding is Essential to Health Care Coverage for New Yorkers
Strengthening Medicaid and protecting health coverage for New Yorkers is critical to ensuring that our state can respond effectively to the coronavirus public health crisis and the current economic recession. The Urban Institute has projected that Medicaid caseloads could increase by as much as 1,204,000, or 22.5 percent, through FY 2021—an unprecedented spike. New York needs help to cover those who are newly unemployed and expected to enroll in Medicaid and offset extra Medicaid costs related to coronavirus. Without proper funding, the state will be unable to treat at-risk patients, keep families healthy, or provide life-saving care. Download the Factsheet [...]
Legislators Unite for People-Centered Recovery with Statement of Principles
Over 100 New York State Senate and Assembly members, along with statewide unions, the Fiscal Policy Institute, and the Strong Economy for All Coalition, called for no state budget cuts without raising revenue. The coalition has released a signed statement of principles calling for a balanced state tax policy where everyone pays their fair share and a post-pandemic economic recovery plan centered on the best engine for recovery for individual New Yorkers and their communities. Read the full Statement of Principles here. Press Release: One hundred New York State Senate and Assembly members today released a signed pledge to refuse to [...]
The Fiscal Policy Institute’s Three-Point Plan for Re-Building New York
May 27, 2020. The Fiscal Policy Institute today warned state legislators and the governor that New York’s financial and social woes will only worsen if they attempt to return to an austerity budget model. The pandemic's public health crisis and subsequent economic downturn deepened an existing budget shortfall and with the deficit projected to be at least $13 billion, the state faces an extraordinary fiscal challenge. There is no simple solution to this crisis which will require bold innovation from our state leadership. Read the Policy Paper: Minimizing Risks While Maximizing Our State's Potential Statement from Ron Deutsch, Executive Director, Fiscal Policy Institute: "Austerity budgeting may seem sensible, but it would do more harm [...]
Unemployed Workers Set to Lose Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation
Unemployed New Yorkers are scheduled to receive their final Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation (FPUC) checks on July 26, 2020. FPUC was enacted as part of the CARES Act and the legislation set FPUC’s expiration for the end of July. The unemployment insurance (UI) expansions included in the CARES Act were quick and appropriate responses to the economic fallout of the coronavirus pandemic. The expansions were intended to help tens of millions of workers across the nation who were laid off due to mandatory business shutdowns ordered to protect public health The Retail and Accommodation and Food Service industries, which represent [...]
New York’s Public Sector Workforce Threatened by Lack of Federal Aid
New York’s public sector workforce is comprised of many of our state’s essential workers: nurses, teachers, firefighters, personal care aides, childcare workers, and more. In total, 24 major occupational groups – defined as having 10,000 or more workers – are part of the sector. A recent economic news release from BLS indicates that over 100,000 public sector workers in New York were laid off from their jobs between February and May of 2020 due to the Coronavirus pandemic and declining state revenues. Characteristics of New York’s Public Sector Workforce • Nearly 1.3 million workers comprise New York State’s public sector [...]
Local Government Reliance on Fines and Fees to Raise Revenues Hurts Residents and Communities
Across New York State, fines and associated fees are relied upon by local governments as a source of local revenue. Decreased aid from the state coupled with the 2-percent property tax cap, which was enacted in 2011 and restricts annual property tax increases to the lesser of 2-percent or the rate of inflation, has led to decreased revenues for local jurisdictions. To make up for budget shortfalls - which have worsened during COVID-19 - local governments may be tempted to raise additional revenue through fines and fees. Reliance on fines and fees as a source of revenue – and separated [...]
Refugee Resettlement Agencies Are Providing Essential Services During COVID-19
Now more than ever, refugee resettlement agencies are providing essential services to refugees and also to a number of other community members, to help protect everyone during the COVID-19 pandemic. Prior to the pandemic, the Fiscal Policy Institute showed how refugee resettlement agencies are anchor institutions in their communities, providing services for some of the most vulnerable community members, jobs for local residents, and a productive use for buildings that in some cases might otherwise be vacant. The importance that refugee resettlement agencies have to local communities is highlighted further due to the COVID-19 pandemic as these agencies give crucial [...]
1.2 Million New Yorkers Excluded from the CARES Act
Undocumented immigrants are being affected by COVID-19 like all other New Yorkers, but unlike others they are being systematically excluded from federal economic assistance programs. The $2 trillion Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act included financial support for many families and businesses through this difficult period. But, despite the efforts of some members of Congress, the CARES Act very specifically excluded undocumented immigrants, and in some cases as collateral damage they excluded the children and spouses of undocumented immigrants, even if they are U.S. citizens or green card holders. The Fiscal Policy Institute has previously written about [...]
Strengthen Medicaid and Protect Health Coverage for New Yorkers
May 20, 2020 This time last year, New York celebrated its lowest rate of residents without health insurance to date at 5 percent. A historic low that is a continuation of nearly a decade of decline in people who lack health insurance, this record-breaking success set New York apart from the national trend of rising uninsured rates. The public health and economic crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic threatens past success in reducing the rate of the uninsured in New York State. We must strengthen and protect the Medicaid program because the pandemic and recession will cause an unprecedented increase [...]
Unemployment Insurance Taxes Paid for Undocumented Workers in NYS
May 14, 2020 In the midst of a pandemic, there has been a growing call for undocumented immigrants, who make up five percent of the New York State labor force, to be covered by some form of unemployment insurance. What is often overlooked in discussions of unemployment insurance is the extent to which undocumented immigrants are already part of paying into the existing system, even when they are excluded from collecting benefits. Undocumented immigrants face the same challenges as other workers. It does not serve the public interest to make it financially impossible for undocumented immigrants to stay home when [...]
New York’s Unemployment System Depends on Continued Federal Assistance
May 11, 2020 Following the Great Recession, New York's Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund only achieved a positive fund balance for the first time in fiscal year 2016. On January 1, 2020, the balance stood at $2.65 billion, but the fund was nearing insolvency according to a report by the U.S. Department of Labor. Since the COVID-19 pandemic mitigation began eight weeks ago, over 1.7 million New York residents have filed for unemployment, which is roughly 5 percent of the nation’s total filings and represents more people than the entire population of the Bronx. As jobless claims grew, the state was [...]
New York Can Do More for All New Yorkers, Regardless of Immigration Status, Amid the COVID-19 Pandemic
April 29, 2020. In response to the economic and health hardships that the COVID-19 pandemic has created for individuals and families, state and federal governments have created relief programs to provide financial, safety and medical assistance. However, these relief programs do not apply to everyone. Many programs exclude undocumented immigrants who have also been laid off from jobs due to nonessential business closures. Undocumented immigrants are also experiencing the same financial and health hardships that the rest of us experience, which warrants the need for the same type of economic and medical support. A recent report from the National Immigration [...]
Undocumented and Unemployed
Orders for non-essential workers to stay at home and the ripple effects of the coronavirus have been felt throughout the New York economy. Over one million New Yorkers have filed for unemployment insurance since the middle of March when the coronavirus impact was first felt. Yet, one group is left behind by both the state’s existing unemployment insurance system and the federal government’s temporary enhancements to that system: undocumented immigrants. There are an estimated 530,000 undocumented immigrants in the New York State labor force. They face the same economic downturn as everyone else. And there is the same logic for [...]
Fines and Fees: Raising Revenue at the Community’s Expense
As New York State looks toward restarting the economy in the wake of COVID-19, a new report from the Fiscal Policy Institute (FPI) warns local governments not to rush to build revenue through the use of fines and fees – a long-standing, inequitable source of funding primarily drawn from low-income communities and communities of color. Between 2010 and 2017, 31 city governments, out of 62, in New York State reported an increase in expected fine revenue in their annual budgets, with a median increase of 25 percent. A 2017 study by political science researchers Michael Sances and Hye Young You [...]