Assemblywoman Michaelle C. Solages (D-Elmont), Deputy Majority Leader and Chair of the Black, Puerto Rican, Hispanic, and Asian Legislative Caucus, released the following statement upon passage of the FY 2025 New York State budget:

“This budget ensures that our schools, hospitals, transportation systems, and various public service programs are adequately funded to provide the resources people rely on daily. It also works to address the affordability crisis that our nation currently faces.

Expanding healthcare services is paramount; the budget's health provisions reflect this. The budget provides a $800M investment to save our safety net hospitals and eliminates all copays for insulin. By securing prenatal leave for pregnant employees and expanding doula access through the new Community Doula Expansion program, we are building on our efforts to prioritize maternal health care for mothers and children across New York State.

Another pressing issue the budget addresses is housing. By increasing protections for tenants and incentivizing developers to build more housing units, the new budget ensures that New York is on a path to meeting current housing demands. Funding the Homeowner Protection Program, anti-housing discrimination programs, and other initiatives will allow families to achieve the dream of home ownership. Clarifying the legal definition of a tenant also ends the uncertainties of drawn-out legal proceedings to evict squatters.

Funding education is crucial for establishing the strength of our economy. Our efforts to preserve Hold Harmless and increase aid to schools will ensure that Long Island's public schools remain some of the best in the country. We have also secured more library funding, including $44M in capital funding. In higher education, expanding the Tuition Assistance Program to include more dependent and independent students and increasing the minimum award from $500 to $1,000 will make college more affordable for thousands of families across New York. Increasing capital and operating aid to SUNY and CUNY preserves our outstanding public university system.

The enacted budget makes strides toward combating crime, specifically targeting retail theft and hate crimes. Twenty-three more offenses are now classified as hate crimes in New York, and the state will prosecute offenders as such. Illegal cannabis businesses will also face closure as this budget authorizes padlock orders to be placed on retailers that operate without proper licensing.

In addressing the urgent need to protect and preserve our environment, the budget includes full funding for clean water initiatives, totaling $500M. It also provides The Environmental Protection Fund with $400M, which will meet Long Island's unique needs as we deal with the climate crisis.

While the new budget strides towards expanding access to necessary resources, it presents several opportunities that the State should improve. Chief among these is the short-term maximum disability benefit, which has been unchanged since 1989. The current benefit amount does not adequately serve New Yorkers who need temporary medical leave.

In these budget bills, we have held firm on many of the essential services proposed to be cut and ensured they got proper funding. I am proud of the work put in to meet the needs of our most vulnerable communities. However, the job is far from finished. Now is the time to push for our remaining legislative priorities during the last weeks of this session."