NYSCADV has developed several materials for you to provide to legislators during meetings or via snail mail or email. These include a sample letter, 2023 budgetary priorities, 2023 legislative priorities and a 2022 DV Counts Flyer. We have also developed talking points and a Q&A for your use.
Sample Letter
[DATE]
The Honorable {Legislator’s full name}
{Building / Street}
Albany, NY {ZIP}
Re: New York State Budget FY ’23–‘24
Dear {Assembly member/Senator + last name},
I am writing to you today as a/an {advocate, program director, executive director, etc.} at {your organization}.
Every year, more than 50,000 victims of domestic violence rely on domestic violence advocacy services to enhance their safety, recover from trauma, find housing and employment, and access legal services. Yet the far-ranging impact of rising costs on flat or reduced funding to the network of advocacy services statewide has significantly increased barriers for survivors seeking services. Providers are laying off staff, facing difficulties retaining other staff, and are making difficult decisions regarding the number of clients they can serve.
At the same time, demand for services is at an all-time high. In fact, New York has the highest demand for domestic violence services in the nation[1], and while state officials are focused on record high crime rates[2], the response to meeting the needs of crime victims has been sorely lacking.
To ensure the continuity and sustainability of New York’s domestic violence services safety net, we are asking Governor Hochul and the Legislature for the following:
1. Support DV Staffing by Setting Living Wage Floor of No Less than $21/hour for All State-funded Human Services Workers and Providing an 8.5% COLA to All State-Funded Human Services Contracts
2. Increase TANF Set Aside for Non-Residential Domestic Violence Services to $6 Million to Meet High Demand and Adjust for Inflation
3. Maintain the Shift of $14.4 Million from General Funds to OVS and Appropriate $11.7 Million of New Funding to OVS for Legacy Victim Service Providers that Received Less Funding in 2022-2025 Than Under Prior Contracts
4. Add Organizational Viability Language for All State-Administered Federal Grants Used to Support Domestic Violence Services
More information about these requests is available on the accompanying “NYSCADV’s FY’24 Budgetary Priorities” document. If you would like more information, I can be reached at {phone number}, or you can contact Joan Gerhardt, Director of Public Policy and Advocacy at the New York State Coalition Against Domestic Violence, at jgerhardt@nyscadv.org.
Thank you for your time.
Sincerely,
{Your name and title}
[1] National Network to End Domestic Violence (2022). 17th Annual Domestic Violence Counts Report. Washington, DC.
[2] NYC Police Department CompStat report, Volume 29 Number 49, covering 12/5/2022 through 12/11/2022. Data records a 24.5% increase in overall major crime for year to date compared to the same period last year, including a 27.5% increase in robberies, a 29.4% increase in grand larceny incidents and a 5.5% increase in rape reports. https://www1.nyc.gov/assets/nypd/downloads/pdf/crime_statistics/cs-en-us-city.pdf
