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Legislative Bulletin: One-House Budget Bills Coming Early Next Week

Advocacy Day Recap

Thank you to all those who took part in LeadingAge NY’s second 2018 Advocacy Day on Tuesday! Over 30 attendees met with nearly two dozen legislators, including key committee chairs, and top staff. Advocates discussed a variety of issues related to housing, adult care facilities (ACFs), assisted living, aging services programs, and Naturally Occurring Retirement Communities (NORCs), particularly the need for a $10 million, five-year investment in an Affordable Independent Senior Housing Assistance Program and an increase in the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) rate for ACF residents. Notable highlights included LeadingAge NY’s meetings with Assembly Aging Committee Chair Donna Lupardo, who was very engaged on the SSI issue, and Assembly Housing Committee Chair Steven Cymbrowitz, who shared his intent to sponsor our senior housing resident assistant bill. Assemblymember Yuh-Line Niou, during a meeting outside the Assembly Chamber, expressed interest in co-sponsoring the resident assistant bill as well.

All of the handouts utilized during Advocacy Day can be accessed here. LeadingAge NY encourages you, if you were not able to join us in Albany, to share these briefs with your lawmakers in their district offices. As a reminder, legislators will be in their districts on Fridays this month, providing valuable opportunities for you to meet and tell your story. It is critical that they understand how the budget will impact your organization and why they should support our policy agenda.

Last Chance to Engage with Your Lawmakers Before One-House Bills Are Passed!

Time is running out to contact your lawmakers before one-house budget bills are passed! The Assembly and Senate are expected to sign off on resolutions outlining their priorities early next week, with budget committees convening on Wednesday to begin negotiating a final budget. As discussions start to pick up, it is imperative that your legislators hear from you. Remember: if our issues are not addressed in at least one of the one-house bills, it is highly unlikely that they will be part of the final enacted budget.

LeadingAge NY is very pleased to report that Senate Housing Committee Chair Betty Little and Assembly Housing Committee Chair Steven Cymbrowitz have introduced legislation, A.10017/S.7866, that would establish an Affordable Independent Senior Housing Assistance Program to bolster the State’s historic commitment of $125 million in senior housing capital appropriations. LeadingAge NY and a coalition of housing organizations and advocates have been working hard on this proposal over the last several weeks. Senator Little has asked that the bill language be included in the Senate’s one-house budget proposal, and S.7866 has been placed on the agenda for Wednesday’s Senate Housing Committee meeting. We encourage you to contact Senator Little and Assemblyman Cymbrowitz to thank them for introducing this important bill and then reach out to your lawmakers to encourage their support as well.

Other initiatives that we would like to see addressed in the one-house bills include the following:

  1. Capital Funding for the LTPAC Sector
  2. Support ACF and Assisted Living Providers that Serve Low-Income Seniors
  3. MLTC Rate Adequacy, LHCSA Contract Limits, and Provider Marketing/Referral Bans
  4. Support High-Quality Nursing Home Care for Vulnerable New Yorkers

SSI Increase Legislation Reintroduced in Assembly

LeadingAge NY is also pleased to share that Assemblyman Anthony Brindisi has reintroduced a bill to increase the SSI reimbursement rate for ACFs by $20 per day per resident over five years, beginning April 1, 2018. This legislation was initially introduced at our request last session and passed both houses of the Legislature before being vetoed by the Governor in December. The State has not increased its share of the SSI benefit in 11 years, and as LeadingAge NY’s analysis of 2015 data demonstrates, the average cost per day to provide ACF services is now double the daily rate. This chronic underpayment has left many facilities that serve low-income seniors to face difficult financial decisions.

To join LeadingAge NY in urging lawmakers to include an SSI increase and other provisions that support ACF and assisted living providers in this year’s budget, please click here.

New York Congressional Democrats Introduce Hardest Hit Housing Act of 2018

On Wednesday, Congresswoman Yvette Clarke (NY-09), Congressman José Serrano (NY-15), and Congressman Gregory Meeks (NY-05) introduced the Hardest Hit Housing Act of 2018, legislation that would provide the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) with additional funds to ensure that low- and middle-income Americans have access to affordable housing.

Per a statement from Congresswoman Clarke’s office, the Hardest Hit Housing Act would “allocate $4 billion a year in supplemental funding to the Public Housing Capital Fund Grant Program for public housing authorities that own or manage more than 10,000 units,” supply the 15 states with the highest foreclosure rates with “foreclosure mitigation and assistance grants” in the amount of $5 million per year for five years, and “authorize rental assistance grants to fund 100,000 incremental housing choice vouchers for housing authorities at a rate of 20,000 units per year over five years.”

LeadingAge NY has signed on to a “Dear Colleague” letter in support of this legislation, and we encourage you to contact your congressional representative to urge his or her support as well.

LeadingAge National Hosts Informational Webinar for PEAK Advocates

Finally, LeadingAge National hosted a special webinar on Thursday afternoon for those planning to participate in the PEAK Leadership Summit Hill Visits on Wed., March 21st. Presenters outlined the key issues to be discussed during meetings, including nursing home survey and enforcement reform (in particular, ending the two-year nurse aide training lockout); FY 2019 funding for affordable, service-enriched senior housing; and the overarching need for financing for long-term services and supports. Issue briefs, talking points, and a meeting schedule will be made available on Tues., March 20th and reviewed during a breakfast briefing from 8 to 9 am the following morning. Advocates will then be shuttled to Capitol Hill in time for the start of meetings at 10 am.

LeadingAge National also provided several Hill meeting tips during the webinar, recommending that advocates come prepared with a brief introduction of their community, their residents, and what they do; using their story to illustrate key issues; and inviting the Representative or Senator to visit their community.

Contacts:

Ami Schnauber, aschnauber@leadingageny.org, 518-867-8854

Jeff Diamond, jdiamond@leadingageny.org, 518-867-8821