Reports, briefs and presentations

Student Loan Debt Shortchanges Us All

Economic Recovery Depends on Our Ability to Contribute to the Economy Read the report: “The Rising Burden of Education Debt on Older New Yorkers” December 3, 2020 (Albany, NY) The burden of education debt is not limited to students, it includes their parents and grandparents. Currently, the fastest-growing age-segment of the student loan market is age 60 and older. With New York looking for a speedy economic recovery, solving the education debt crisis means a healthier and more productive state. "Higher education has been portrayed as the key to unlock the door to opportunity [...]

Fern Whyland2020-12-30T09:47:36-05:00December 3rd, 2020|Education, Reports, briefs and presentations|

COVID-19 Revenue Shortfalls Threaten Increase to Fines and Fees

November 2020 Declining revenues threaten New York State’s Local Governments, starting with steep declines in sales tax revenue collections. This revenue stream, which annually totals just over $16 billion for New York State’s counties, cities, towns, villages, and school districts, is expected to shrink precipitously in 2020 and into 2021, exceeding the six percent decline realized during The Great Recession.[i] At the same time, the state’s property tax cap limits local governments’ ability to bolster local revenues. Moreover, Congress’s continued decision not to pass a [...]

Fern Whyland2020-12-30T09:49:26-05:00November 23rd, 2020|Good Governance, Reports, briefs and presentations|

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 [...]

Shamier Settle2020-12-30T09:54:20-05:00October 14th, 2020|Blog, Employment, Unemployment & Job Quality, Health Care, Reports, briefs and presentations|

Pandemic Economics Demand A Diverse Response

October 14, 2020 In light of New Jersey's adoption of a millionaires tax to help fill a statewide revenue hole caused by the coronavirus, many asked what about New York? Like New Jersey, New York was hard hit by the pandemic, and its economy continues to suffer. Like New Jersey, New York has historic fiscal problems with a budget shortage of $14.5 billion this year, and in the tens of billions of dollars over the next several years. Like New Jersey, we continue to wait on the federal government [...]

Fern Whyland2020-12-30T09:53:25-05:00October 14th, 2020|Economic Outlook, Press releases, Reports, briefs and presentations|

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 [...]

Fern Whyland2020-12-30T09:55:55-05:00August 26th, 2020|Blog, Housing, Reports, briefs and presentations|

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 [...]

Fern Whyland2020-12-30T10:06:58-05:00July 20th, 2020|Blog, Employment, Unemployment & Job Quality, Reports, briefs and presentations|

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 [...]

Fern Whyland2020-12-30T13:38:55-05:00June 10th, 2020|Blog, Good Governance, Must Read, Reports, briefs and presentations|

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 [...]

Fern Whyland2020-12-30T13:40:32-05:00May 15th, 2020|Blog, Health Care, Reports, briefs and presentations|

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 [...]

Fern Whyland2020-12-30T13:54:09-05:00May 13th, 2020|Blog, Employment, Unemployment & Job Quality, Health Care, Reports, briefs and presentations|

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 [...]

Fern Whyland2020-12-30T13:54:52-05:00May 11th, 2020|Blog, Employment, Unemployment & Job Quality, Must Read, Reports, briefs and presentations|

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 [...]

Fern Whyland2020-12-30T13:59:11-05:00April 17th, 2020|Blog, Good Governance, Must Read, Reports, briefs and presentations|

FPI Comments on Federal Reserve Action

April 17, 2020 Recently, the Federal Reserve took a welcome step forward for states struggling in the wake of the pandemic by creating a new way to lend money directly to states and municipalities. Through the Municipal Liquidity Facility, New York and other states struggling with a sudden drop-off in much-needed revenue can now access the funds needed to cover essential services. While this is helpful in the short-term, states will need to borrow until their revenues recover. And that would require the facility to be expanded: loan [...]

Fern Whyland2020-12-30T13:58:38-05:00April 17th, 2020|Blog, Federal Taxes & Budget Policy, Reports, briefs and presentations|

New York’s Essential Workers Overlooked, Underpaid, and Indispensable

The coronavirus crisis has put a new focus on “essential workers,” people who are bringing deliveries to our homes, working in supermarkets and convenience stores, keeping the public transportation system functioning, providing social services and childcare, and working in the healthcare industry. These essential workers have always played a critical role in keeping our communities running. At a time when many streets are eerily empty, however, we can see all the more clearly who is still out there making sure people get food on the [...]

Fern Whyland2020-12-30T14:01:54-05:00April 8th, 2020|Creating Vibrant Communities, Employment, Unemployment & Job Quality, Must Read, Reports, briefs and presentations|

NY’s Best Prescription? An Accurate Census Count

While the coronavirus is upending our daily lives, we must not let this public health crisis derail our state’s census participation. New York must have an accurate count because it will affect our lives for the next 10 years - including the resources our state has to combat the next health threat or climate crisis. All New Yorkers should complete a census form - either by mail, phone, or online. More information on completing the census is available from the Census Bureau. Learn more by [...]

Fern Whyland2020-12-30T14:05:16-05:00March 30th, 2020|Blog, Good Governance, Reports, briefs and presentations|

FPI’s New Report Highlights the Unequal State of New York

For Immediate Release: December 6, 2019 Media Contact: Fern Whyland, Communications Director, whyland@fiscalpolicy.org, 315-436-0558 The Unequal State of New York The Majority of Income is Captured by the Fewest New Yorkers Read the report: The Unequal State of New York click here. (Albany, NY) The Fiscal Policy Institute reports that New York State has the most unequal income distribution in the nation, with the fewest people capturing the greatest share. Not since the “Gilded Age” of the 1920s has our state seen such a vast divide [...]

Fern Whyland2021-01-06T10:46:27-05:00December 6th, 2019|Creating Vibrant Communities, Employment, Unemployment & Job Quality, Housing, Press releases, Reports, briefs and presentations|

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