Below you will find a sample email to send to legislators and a link to attachments you can include with that email. We encourage you to tailor the sample email to highlight any local information you feel your legislators should be aware of (e.g., impacts to your program, what you are seeing in the field, nuances specific to DV programs and the victim/survivors you work with, etc.)  

Subject: NYSCADV’s 2025 Legislative Day of Action  

Dear (Senator/Assembly Member),  

I am writing to you today as a/an (advocate, program director, executive director, etc.) at (your organization).  

Domestic violence victim advocates, survivors, allies, and community members from across the state are joining together today for the New York State Coalition Against Domestic Violence’s (NYSCADV) 2025 Day of Action. Our message to state legislators is clear: Thousands of New Yorkers experience domestic violence every day. They require access to resources and services that can help them enhance their own safety, and the safety of their families, and rebuild their lives. By investing in critical, life-sustaining services, legislators can ensure survivors have the support they need to heal and move forward.  

Unfortunately, New York State continues to have the highest demand for domestic violence services in the country. According to the National Network to End Domestic Violence’s national Domestic Violence Counts survey, on one day in New York in 2024, 10,000 adult and child victims of DV sought services – a 64% increase in demand from the year before. More troubling, on that same day, more than 1,700 victims did not receive the help they requested due to a lack of resources and staff.  

DV advocates are supporting the following legislation to enhance the ability of survivors to access assistance and enhance their safety, and to support DV advocates in their work:  

A.2590 Hevesi/S1580 Persaud: Would add residential and non-residential DV programs, OVS-licensed crime victim service programs and DOH-licensed rape crisis programs, among others, to designated human services programs eligible for cost-of-living adjustments;  

A.6194 Hevesi/S.5998 Skoufis: Called Kyra’s Law, would require courts to conduct a prompt evidentiary hearing to review any findings or allegations of DV, child abuse, and child neglect before issuing orders of custody or visitation;  

A.3038A Rosenthal/S.1353A Cleare: Would permit DV survivors to dispute coerced debt; and,  

A.506 Paulin/S.2075 Mayer: Would streamline New York’s contracting processes to reduce delays in contract execution and reimbursements to nonprofits that provide services to vulnerable populations.  

If you would like more information, you can contact me or Joan Gerhardt, Director of Public Policy and Advocacy at NYSCADV, at jgerhardt@nyscadv.org.  

Sincerely,  

(name and title) 

Remember to attach these materials 

LEGISLATOR PACKAGE MATERIALS (Zip File Included on main page)

• Day of Action Priorities One Pager 
• Memos of Support 
• 2025 Legislative Priorities 
• DV Services Transformation and Stabilization Program One Pager 
• DV Counts Summary 
• DV Counts Flyer