CPC State Policy and Advocacy Priorities for FY24-25 | Chinese-American Planning Council
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CPC State Policy and Advocacy Priorities for FY24-25

Mar
8

Founded in 1965, CPC is a social services organization that creates positive social change. We empower Asian American, immigrant, and low-income communities in New York City by ensuring they have equitable access to the resources and opportunities needed to thrive.

Human Services: Through our human services programming, CPC is the trusted partner to more than 80,000 individuals and families striving to achieve goals in their education, family, community and career. CPC supports:

  • Fully fund human services agencies: establish for a $21 wage floor, an annual cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) in human services contracts, and support Wage Board legislation through the Just Pay campaign
  • Restructuring the non-for-profit contracting advisory committee by passing A7531.
  • Invest $54.35 million in AAPI organizations to address anti-Asian violence and meet urgent community needs
  • Invest in our New York: pass revenue raising bills to fund $40 billion in new investments ensure that vital programs and safety net services are fully funded and ensure the ultra-wealthy and corporations are contributing their fair share
  • Enhance the Settlement House Program from $2.45 million to $5 million.
  • Early Childhood Education: Establish a new fund for localities to serve all income-eligible families, use Economic Development Funds to support childcare programs, expand the Child Care Tax Credit, allocate $5 million to Child Care Resource and Referral (CCR&R) to provide additional training.
  • Universal Child Care: Pass the Universal Child Care Act (S3245/A4815) to ensure that all children, regardless of ages or type of setting, have quality care and pass the Early Learning Child Care Act (S4883) that would not only enrich the minds of children ages three and under but provide the necessary funding and resources to child care facilities to ensure they are supported.  
  • Child Welfare: Restore the Open-Ended Preventive/Protective Services State-funded portion to 65/35; invest $17 million to raise wages for foster care workers.
  • Adult Literacy: Protect current Adult Literacy Education (ALE) funding at $9.3 million to keep programs whole Invest an additional $9.3 million in FY25 for the ALE.Fund to stabilize and enhance ALE programs by increasing maximum funding per program and allowing providers to better serve the 6,000 New Yorkers enrolled. Invest an additional $9.3 million in FY25 to reach and serve an additional 3,000 students with increased funding per program.
  • Supporting Intellectual/Developmental Disabilities: include an 8.5% Cost-Of-Living-Adjustment (COLA), as well as the establishment of a Direct Support Wage Enhancement (DSWE) to increase hourly pay for Direct Support workers.
  • Senior services: invest $13.5 million in the home-delivered “meals on wheels” program.
  • Nutrition Access: increase funding for the Nutrition Outreach and Education Program (NOEP) to a total of $5.22 million to enable community-based organizations to conduct outreach and increase participation in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) in all New York counties.

CPC is a member of the following human services coalitions and organizations and endorses their platforms: Human Services Council (HSC), Coalition for Asian American Children and Families (CACF) United Neighborhood Houses (UNH), Asian American Federation (AAF), Federation of Protestant Welfare Agencies (FPWA), Day Care Council of New York (DCCNY), Council of Family and Child Caring Agencies (COFCCA), New York City Coalition for Adult Literacy (NYCCAL) and Live On New York, Invest in Our New York coalition, Invest in Skills coalition,One Fair Wage coalition, Let NY Vote coalition and the APA Voice coalition and supports their platform.

Immigrant Justice: At a time when immigrant New Yorkers increasingly need legal services for immigration, housing and employment, it is critical to ensure access to information, resources and counsel. In New York City, 20% of all active immigration court cases are Chinese. Simultaneously, low-income, immigrant communities and communities of color experience an unfair share of profiling, surveillance, and punitive fines and fees, leading to unjust arrests and over-incarceration. CPC supports:

  • Invest in community-based legal services: invest an additional $150 million in legal services funding for immigrant families including the Liberty Defense Fund and enhancing the Office of New American Opportunity Centers funding and reinstating the ESOL gateway model
  • Passing the Access to Representation Act (S999A/A170) to establish a right to counsel in immigration court proceedings and invest $55 million in implementation.
  • Unemployment Bridge Program: expand on the success of the Excluded Workers fund by establishing a permanent unemployment bridge program for undocumented workers by investing $500 million.
  • Passing the Street Vendor Formalization Bill (S1739/A3575): formalize and decriminalize the street vending industry by removing the currently insurmountable barrier to entry to the industry so that vendors may obtain permits to operate their business in accordance with the law.
  • Pass bills to end the harms of the criminal legal and immigration system including: New York for All  (S987/A5686), Treatment not Jail (S1976/A1263) Stop Violence in the Sex Trades (S4396/A7175), Fair and Timely Parole (S307/A162), Elder Parole (S2423/A2035), Dignity Not Detention (S306/A4354), End Predatory Court Fees (S313/A4183). 

CPC is a member of the Justice Roadmap coalition, the Fund Excluded Workers Coalition, and the New York Immigration Coalition and endorses their platforms.

Healthcare and Care: Inequitable access to healthcare is a key issue in our communities, where one in five Asian Americans is uninsured, and many more are underinsured. CPC supports measures to expand coverage and services in the short term, while calling for universal guaranteed healthcare. CPC supports:

  • Passing the New York Health Act (S7590/A7897): establish a universal, publicly financed single pay health plan to provide comprehensive health coverage for all New Yorkers regardless of age, immigration status, or financial status.
  • Meeting urgent health needs through expanding the Essential Plan to cover undocumented New Yorkers (Coverage For All: S2237A/A3020) and the End Medical Debt bills (A7363/S6522 and S1366A/A6027).
  • Increase wages and ensure livable wages for home care workers (Fair Pay for Home Care: S5374A/A6329) and establishing dignified working schedules for home care workers through replacing 24-hour live in shifts with 12-hour split shifts (A6899/S359A), fully funding Medicaid to eliminate the home care shortage, ensure good wages and working conditions for home care workers through the Home Care Savings and Reinvestment Act (S7800), and ensure adequate and dignified care for all who need it.
  • Preserving and expanding Medicaid services and funding by removing the Medicaid Cap (A226/S5255) and increasing funding for safety net hospitals and programs (A6883/S5954).

CPC is a member of the Caring Majority Coalition, the Consumer Directed Personal Assistance Association of New York (CDPAANYS), Healthcare for All New York (HCFANY), and the Medicaid Advocacy Strategy Group (Medicaid Matters) and endorses their platforms.

Housing & Mobility: Communities of color are disproportionately affected by transportation deserts, ADA inaccessible stations, and disrupted public transportation, while simultaneously burdened with fare hikes that rise faster than wages and punitive fare evasion policing that criminalizes working class New Yorkers.

  • Pass Good Cause Eviction (S305/A4454) to protect tenants against unjust evictions
  • Create a statewide rental assistance program through the Housing Access Voucher Program that includes undocumented New Yorkers (S568/A4021).
  • Fully fund the Housing Our Neighbors with Dignity Act (HONDA)
  • Pass legislation to create a Social Housing Development Authority (SHDA), a statewide authority with the power to build and preserve high-quality, affordable housing all across New York State
  • Investing $10 million to provide service coordination in senior affordable housing services
  • Fix the MTA by passing the Freeze Fares, Fund Frequency & Free Bus Act (S4024/A4112) to ensure affordable and efficient service.

CPC is a member of Housing Justice for All and Riders Alliance and endorses their platforms.

Climate & Environmental Justice: Many of our AAPI, low-income, and immigrant communities have faced the repercussions of turbulent weather conditions that have been exacerbated by the climate crisis. There is an urgent need to invest in our community well-being and safety through building climate resilient infrastructures and systems.

  • Pass the People’s Climate Justice Budget that calls for $1 billion in critical funding for shovel ready, environmental justice projects
  • Addressing the disproportionate impacts that climate change has had on marginalized communities through passing the Climate, Jobs, and Justice Package which includes the NY Home Energy Affordable Transition Act (S2016A/A4592A), Just Energy Transition Act (S2935C/A4866C), and the Climate Change Superfund Act (S2129A/A4866C)

CPC is a member of the NY Renews coalition and supports their platforms to decarbonize New York and transition into renewable energy that will allow all New Yorkers to live in a safe and healthy environment.