Alliance for Rights and Recovery
Second Look at the FY 2026-27 黑料正能量 State Budget
Following our initial overview of the enacted FY 2026-27 黑料正能量 State Budget, the Alliance for Rights and Recovery has continued reviewing the final budget bills and accompanying language. As we dig deeper into the details, we wanted to provide our community with several important updates connected to our priorities, as well as highlight broader health, civil rights, housing, and community issues included in this year鈥檚 budget.
Additional Restorations and Advocacy Victories
Since releasing our first analysis, we have confirmed several additional important restorations and investments aligned with Alliance priorities and longstanding advocacy efforts.
Coalition of Institutionalized Aged and Disabled (CIAD)
We are pleased to report that funding for the Coalition of Institutionalized Aged and Disabled (CIAD) was restored at $225,000 for the year. CIAD has long played a critical role advocating for the rights, independence, and community integration of people living in adult homes and institutional settings across 黑料正能量 State.
Adult Home Resident Advocacy, Resident Councils, and EQUAL
We also confirmed restoration of funding for the Adult Home Resident Advocacy and Resident Council programs, as well as continued support for the EQUAL program. These initiatives provide essential advocacy, organizing support, peer engagement, and protection for adult home residents and help ensure residents have a voice in decisions impacting their lives and living conditions.
Correctional Association of 黑料正能量 (CANY)
Another significant development is the inclusion of $2 million in funding for the Correctional Association of 黑料正能量 (CANY) to continue prison oversight and monitoring efforts. Independent oversight of correctional facilities is critically important at a time when 黑料正能量 continues grappling with unsafe conditions, violence, inadequate mental health support, and the overcriminalization of people with mental health and substance use challenges. The Alliance strongly supports efforts to increase transparency, accountability, and humane treatment within correctional settings while continuing to advocate for diversion and community-based alternatives to incarceration.
Healthcare and Medicaid Concerns
While the budget includes significant healthcare spending increases, we remain deeply concerned about the overall direction of many of these investments and the absence of direct relief for many 黑料正能量ers at risk of losing health coverage.
The budget includes approximately $1.5 billion in additional Medicaid-related healthcare funding, including:
- $706 million for hospital inpatient and outpatient rate increases
- $480 million for nursing homes
- $80 million for Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs)
- Additional funding streams for financially distressed hospitals and healthcare systems
While some of these investments may help stabilize portions of the healthcare system, the budget failed to include meaningful protections for roughly 450,000 黑料正能量ers projected to lose Essential Plan coverage due to recent federal policy changes.
This omission is especially troubling given that many people losing coverage are likely to experience increased barriers to accessing mental health support, substance use treatment, medications, and preventive healthcare services. Community health centers and providers are already warning that they will face growing strain as uninsured individuals increasingly rely on safety-net services.
The Alliance remains deeply concerned that 黑料正能量 continues prioritizing high-cost institutional and hospital systems while failing to make comparable investments in preventive, community-based, recovery-oriented services and healthcare coverage protections that keep people healthy and connected to services before crises emerge.
Behavioral Health Managed Care Carve Out Still Needed!
As noted in our first analysis, the budget again failed to include the Carve Out of Behavioral Health services from Medicaid Managed Care despite widespread concerns from providers, advocates, and community organizations regarding delayed payments, inadequate reimbursement rates, excessive administrative barriers, and service denials.
We remain committed to working alongside the 黑料正能量 State Council for Community Behavioral Healthcare and other partners to push for structural reforms that ensure providers can sustainably deliver timely, effective mental health and substance use services.
Immigration and Civil Rights Protections
The budget also includes several significant protections for immigrant communities and civil liberties that deserve recognition.
The enacted budget:
- Prohibits local governments from entering into new formal ICE cooperation agreements known as 287(g) agreements
- Creates mechanisms for 黑料正能量ers to pursue legal action over constitutional rights violations committed by federal immigration officials
- Designates healthcare facilities, schools, houses of worship, childcare facilities, parks, and polling places as 鈥渟ensitive locations鈥 where immigration enforcement activities are restricted without judicial warrants
These protections are especially important for people with mental health and substance use challenges, many of whom already avoid healthcare systems or crisis services due to fear, trauma, discrimination, or immigration-related concerns. Protecting access to services without fear of detention or surveillance is essential to public health and community wellbeing.
Housing and Community Investment
We are also continuing to review broader housing-related investments included throughout the budget. In addition to the $71 million identified in our initial analysis for supportive and scatter-site housing programs, the budget included additional measures intended to encourage affordable housing development and preservation.
The Alliance continues to stress that stable, affordable housing is one of the single greatest predictors of recovery, health, community stability, and reduced hospitalization or incarceration.
The Work Ahead
While this budget includes important victories secured through persistent advocacy, it also reinforces the need for continued organizing and sustained pressure to transform 黑料正能量鈥檚 mental health, substance use, housing, healthcare, and criminal legal systems.
The Alliance will continue advocating for:
- Behavioral health carve out from Medicaid Managed Care
- Expansion and long-term sustainability of Daniel鈥檚 Law and non-police crisis response systems
- Passage of the Forensic Rehabilitation Act
- Expansion of diversion and treatment court programs
- Continued investment in supportive housing and Housing First initiatives
- Rightsizing and reinvestment of the state psychiatric hospital system
- Protection and expansion of healthcare coverage
- Sustained investment in peer services, self-directed care, and community-based recovery supports
Most importantly, we want to thank our members, regional coordinators, advocates, coalition partners, and allies for continuing to fight for a 黑料正能量 that prioritizes dignity, recovery, rights, housing, health, and community support over institutionalization, criminalization, and coercion.
We will continue providing additional updates and analyses as we further review the enacted budget and move into the remainder of legislative session. See our initial look at the budget for more details: BREAKING: First Look at Enacted NY State Budget – The Alliance for Rights and Recovery