Talking Points and Q&A

These talking points are intended for use during meetings with legislators, 
either virtually or in person.

Use it as a guide for your conversations. There is no need to memorize these points or cover all the issues described below. Feel free to focus on one or two items of most significance to your program. And we encourage you to modify the language as you see fit so your conversation feels natural. Our goal is to deliver consistent, rather than identical, messaging to legislators.

General Background:

• Thousands of domestic violence victims rely on the care we provide. We help DV victims safety plan. We find them housing, and access to medical or mental health treatment. We advocate on their behalf with state agencies and local government agencies. We help them re-establish their families in new communities, enroll their children in new schools, find jobs, even accompany them in court. Our work is critical and without our program, DV victims would have nowhere to turn.
• New York State is failing to address the needs of domestic violence survivors and their families. On any given day in New York, more than 10,000 adult and child victims of DV seek help from programs like mine. More troubling, more than 1,700 of them did not receive the help they requested due to a lack of resources and staff. We have the highest demand for DV services in the country. Funding has not kept pace with this demand or with inflation.
• Our staff do not make a living wage. We have never gotten a cost-of-living increase available to other human service workers. We are again excluded from this year’s proposed increase. This inequity has resulted in hundreds of employees transitioning from our programs. Every program has several vacancies, further stressing our over-worked and tired workforce. [Provide detail about your program’s challenges recruiting and retaining employees, and/or how vacancies at your program are over-burdening the staff that remain.]

I am asking the Legislature to:

1.     Set aside $10 million to stabilize DV programs facing a federal funding freeze.

The federal administration has tried to freeze New York’s TANF and Title XX funding which is used to support DV services. If these funds are frozen or severely limited, it would devastate DV programs, forcing many to close their doors. We need to make sure there is a system in place to continue DV services if the federal administration succeeds at freezing these critical funds. [Provide information about the importance of emergency shelter, which is primarily funded with TANF and Title XX.]

2.     Increase the Governor’s $100 million commitment for victim services by $25 million.

Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) funding is a critical funding stream, enabling hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers to access services including shelter, housing, legal assistance, counseling and more. New York’s federal VOCA grant has declined $127 million since 2018, losing 64% of its value. While the Governor’s commitment is welcome news, and we urge the Legislature to maintain it, it may not be enough to fully fund OVS VOCA contracts. We urge the Legislature to increase the Governor’s earmark by $25 million to ensure the continuity of these critical safety net services.

3.     Stabilize the DV sector’s diminishing workforce by providing a 7.8% increase on our NYS contracts.

DV advocates are essential, frontline workers whose work requires specialized skills and training. It is also a 24/7 job, requiring us to meet DV survivors where they are – at the police station, in court or the hospital – to provide critical, life-changing services. We have been excluded from every budgetary initiative intended to raise wages for human service workers. This failure has had a disastrous impact on our ability to retain employees, which impacts our ability to provide services. A bill has been introduced (S3669B) to provide a 7.8% increase on state contracts with human services providers including DV programs. We urge you to support it.

4.     Increase TANF set-aside for non-residential DV services by $6.5 million to meet current demand 

Demand for non-residential DV services has increased 63% in the last five years. Yet funding for these services has not increased since 2000. We urge the Legislature to increase this set-aside to $9.6 million to address inflation and the extraordinarily high demand for such services.

Questions and Answers

If asked: Why are you asking for a 7.8% COLA? Isn’t that higher than what other advocacy organizations are seeking?

A: The Human Services Coalition is seeking a 2.7% COLA this year. This coalition is predominantly made up of human services workers who have been receiving annual COLA’s for several consecutive years. We are asking for a higher COLA because we have never received one. Therefore, our wages are significantly lower than other human service workers. We believe a 7.8% COLA for DV advocates will bring parity to our workforce.

If asked: Hasn’t the court issued a Temporary Restraining Order restricting the federal government from freezing TANF and Title XX funding?

A: Yes, the court issued a temporary restraining order and a stay, which prohibits the federal government from freezing TANF and Title XX funding as New York’s lawsuit proceeds. It is the outcome of that litigation that we concerned about.

If asked: The Governor has proposed extending criminal and civil Orders of Protection. Do you support that?

A: Yes, I support the Governor’s proposal to require courts to extend criminal and civil Temporary Orders of Protection until defendants or respondents subsequently appear in court. Allowing these orders to lapse solely because a defendant or respondent doesn’t appear undermines survivor safety.

If asked: Can you explain why DV advocates are asking the Legislature to include the SAFE Shelter Act in the budget?

A: The SAFE Shelter Act aims to expand shelter availability for adult survivors without children. Currently, if a DV shelter houses a single individual in a double occupancy room, they lose revenue for the open bed in the room. The SAFE Shelter Act would require the state to provide full reimbursement to a provider (e.g., a per diem for both beds in the room) when a room intended to accommodate two individuals is used to house a single adult survivor.

If asked: Are DV advocates supporting requests for an increase in the Interest on Lawyers’ Account (IOLA)?

A: Yes, we do support the request that the IOLA be fully appropriated at $102.5 million. IOLA's sole purpose is to fund civil legal services for low-income New Yorkers. The Governor did not fund IOLA at the level approved by the IOLA Board. It’s critical that the full appropriation be restored to ensure the continuity of civil legal services across the state.

If asked: Are DV advocates supporting the NY for All Act (A3506A/S2235B)?

A: The NY for All Act would prohibit law enforcement and state agencies from enforcing federal immigration laws, sharing sensitive information for federal authorities or entering non-public areas of state and local property without a judicial warrant. DV advocates support this bill to ensure immigrant survivors can lead open lives, participate in their local communities, provide for their families and obtain health care.