After a difficult negotiation which fell apart multiple times over the past week, New York state finally has a budget deal in place.
The $220 billion agreement includes hourly wage increases for home care workers and direct support professionals (DSPs) — those people working with individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
According to state Democratic Assemblyman John McDonald, of Cohoes, there is also a well-needed boost to economic development in the form of child care funding.
“We have an over $2.7 billion investment in child care planned out over the next three years to provide some immediate relief, to continue to help get these day cares open, but also to get more people under the umbrella to be eligible for greater support for child care,” McDonald told Capital Tonight. “This helps working families, which I think is one of the best aspects of this whole budget.”
Regarding the $265 million in opioid settlement money in the budget that activists argue should be appropriated by an opioid settlement board, McDonald, who sits on the Assembly Committee on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse, said the funding will be steered toward “time-tested items that everybody supports.”
“Ideally, you’re right, Susan. It would be great for the [Opioid Settlement Board] to convene and go through the vote because we put a bill into law to do that. The problem is that the board hasn’t been fully put together,” McDonald said.
In 2020, 100,000 people died in the U.S. due to overdoses.
“So, we can’t wait,” McDonald said of the opioid mitigation funding. “We need to invest that money as soon as is practical.”
According to McDonald, as of Thursday afternoon, there was agreement on major aspects of the budget.
“We expect to be voting on (bills) this evening to some degree. The majority of the bills will be addressed tomorrow. With any luck, come the end of the day Friday, we will have a budget in place; if we hang over into Saturday, that’s possible, but the goal is to get things completed by Friday,” he said.
While the budget was a tough one, McDonald said he’s pleased with the outcome – pointing to property tax rebate checks that many taxpayers will receive in the mail before the November election.
“I am happy with this budget,” McDonald said. “At the end of the day, for those hard-working individuals throughout the state of New York there is going to be over $2 billion in rebate checks going back to them.”