Celebrate Mental Health Awareness Month by Sending a Thank You E-Letter to Governor Hochul

Wed, 01 May 2024 04:00:00 GMT

Governor Hochul worked with the State Legislature to include a 2.84% Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA), $43 million to help address rising property costs in mental health housing programs, as well as set aside $10 million in property preservation funds to help providers ensure their homes are mobility-friendly for aging residents in the final 2024-2025 NY State Budget. This is a welcome step after decades of underfunding and will strengthen New York’s mental health system by improving staff compensation, expanding services for the 40,000+ New Yorkers living in mental health housing, and to make residences more mobility-friendly for aging participants.

Complete the information below to send an e-letter thanking her for her commitment to mental health housing, as well as reminding her that these life-saving programs are still underfunded and understaffed.

Help Advocate for the Inclusion of a 3.2% Across-the-Board COLA in the 2024-2025 State Budget!

Wed, 01 Nov 2023 04:00:00 GMT

Hello - Please take a moment to send an E-letter directly to your local state legislators to advocate for the inclusion of a 3.2% across-the-board COLA in this year’s final budget!

While we are pleased that both the Assembly and Senate have included a 3.2% COLA in their one-house bills, which is an increase from Governor Hochul’s proposed 1.5%, both bills include language that requires that the COLA funding be applied only to salary increases for non-executive and non-administrative staff. The Legislature’s proposed 3.2% COLA provides nothing for increases in operational costs - including insurance, transportation, food, utilities, and much more. Negotiations will now begin to take place which will result in the final budget, which is due April 1st. We need your help!

Please take a moment to send a brand new e-letter to the Governor and your local legislators, urging them to provide for a 3.2% across-the-board COLA in the final budget.

From 2006 to 2021, providers experienced significant funding erosion due to the continuous deferral of the previous statutory human services Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA). We are extremely grateful for the investments made in the previous two enacted State budgets, including the 5.4% and 4% COLAs. Unfortunately, as helpful as these increases were, the 4% COLA in SFY 2023-24 was far below the July 2022 Consumer Price Index (CPI) of 8.5%. Providers are once again at risk of a funding deficit from not having an adequate COLA that keeps pace with the CPI. The mental health housing system needs a 3.2% across-the-board COLA to raise wages for all staff, as well as cover increases in operating costs.

Sending a letter is very easy to do! Just enter your street address, zip code, and full name below and a digital copy of an E-letter will be generated addressed from you to your local legislators. You can then either choose to e-mail it to them OR print and mail a hard copy.

We encourage you to send the E-letter as many time as you would like to and please forward this link to anyone who would also be willing to send it! To learn more about Bring It Home, visit our website bringithomenys.org and follow us on Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), Threads, and Instagram!

Thank You for helping us Bring It Home!

The Bring It Home Coalition

Bring it Home is a coalition of community-based mental health housing providers, mental health advocates, faith leaders, and consumers and their families, urging New York State to adequately fund these community-based housing programs for individuals with psychiatric disabilities. Full recovery and community reintegration depends on stable housing opportunities. Through education and advocacy, Bring it Home is working to bring Better Funding for Better Care to New York.

Current Actions

Celebrate Mental Health Awareness Month by Sending a Thank You E-Letter to Governor Hochul

Help Advocate for the Inclusion of a 3.2% Across-the-Board COLA in the 2024-2025 State Budget!