Colleagues:

In this alert, please find important action items and meeting notices.

Thank you for your involvement,
Jan

Jan Fisher, Executive Director
Nonprofit Westchester

TAKE ACTION

Sign-on Letter to Governor Hochul for Fair Contracting with Nonprofit Organizations

With NPW’s advocacy, S.4877-A (Mayer) / A.2740-B (Paulin), has passed both chambers. This legislation addresses serious issues related to nonprofit contracting including late procurement and payment and government accountability in the contracting process.

We are now advocating for Governor Hochul to sign the bill into law. 

If you have not done so already, please read the letter to Governor Hochul and sign on by EOD Thursday, November 7th.

We know the burden caused by delays in executing and reimbursing nonprofit contracts in New York State impacts organizations across all service areas and, most importantly, the people and communities we serve.

Please share this sign-on letter with other listservs, organizations, and individuals who are impacted by the delays in the contracting processes and would be supportive of this effort.

Westchester County Board of Legislators Asks for Your Support for Increases in the NY State Rental Supplement Program

Contact Governor Hochul and Westchester’s NY State delegation to increase funding for Westchester’s NYS Rental Supplement Program from the current $3 million to $10 million next year that will address 3 issues uniquely impacting Westchester:

1. Increased Cost of Renewals: Westchester has 196 households approved for RSP subsidies. HUD recently changed how it calculates Westchester’s Fair Market Rents (FMR). It added Westchester to the NY Metro FMR area resulting in Westchester’s FMRs abruptly rising as much as 20.5% and 35.5% on 10/1/2024. No other NY county is affected by this change. (Need: $4 million.)

2. Increased Need for Ongoing Subsidies to Prevent Evictions: Westchester recently became the only U.S. county to pass Access To Counsel legislation in order to reduce a tide of eviction filings greater than 35 other NYS counties combined. RSP subsidies are a key tool that enables us to preserve housing for tenants in housing that is both relatively low-cost AND meets HUD’s Housing Quality Standards. (Need: $3 million.)

3. Newly Identified Need: Shockingly Severely Overcrowded Housing: Westchester is the only NY county that has documented that it has 167 families with children living in housing with overcrowding so extreme that it is more than twice the standard of severe overcrowding. We call this Shockingly Severely Overcrowded Housing and need RSP subsidies coupled with outreach and enforcement strategies so we can begin to address this issue countywide. (Need: $3 million.)

Click the link below to ensure that a support letter in support of these issues is sent to Governor Hochul and your NY State legislators.

LEARN & ADVOCATE

Board of Legislators Nonprofit Taskforce Meeting: November 14th at 2:00 PM

BOL 8th Floor Committee Room, County Office Building, 148 Martine Avenue #800, White Plains & Via WebEx. RSVP required to jaac@westchestercountyny.gov.  

NPW Policy Committee Meeting - Presentation from Human Services Council on #JustPay: December 19th, 10:00 AM - 11:30 PM

#JustPay is a movement of nonprofit human services workers, leaders, policy experts, community members, elected officials, and other supporters fighting for livable wages for human services workers across New York. Leveraging multiple avenues for change, #JustPay is advocating for government funding and systemic policy change to ensure human services workers get paid what they deserve. This meeting is open to all NPW members. Pleaser register HERE.

Read NPW's 2025 Advocacy and Policy Agenda HERE.

SAVE THE DATES in 2025

• January 10, 2025: NPW Member Only NY State Budget Forum with NY State Senate Majority Leader Andreas Stewart-Cousins, Dean of the Westchester NY State Assembly Delegation Gary Pretlow and Members of the Westchester NY State Senate and Assembly Delegations
  
  
• February 13, 2025: 2025/26 NY State Budget Information Session with Citizen’s Budget Commission and Mercury Public Affairs