BROOKLYN, N.Y. (April 1st, 2015) -- In response to the finalizing of the state budget, Make the Road New York's co-Executive Director Javier H. Valdés released the following statement on behalf of the organization's 16,000 members.

"'Let them eat cake,' Albany has said of working-class New Yorkers and immigrant youth. The final budget is a dispiriting reminder that Albany is working for billionaires and large corporations, and not for working-class and immigrant New Yorkers. To pass a budget with tax giveaways for yacht and private plane purchases, while not passing a minimum wage increase or DREAM Act, is a slap in the face of low-wage workers and immigrant youth who want nothing more than the opportunity to work, study, and live with respect and dignity.

"Though this budget season is over, their struggles are not; the issues of the minimum wage and the DREAM Act will continue to spur New Yorkers across the state to action in the coming months. The focus of their efforts will be clear: the Senators who overtly blocked these measures and a Governor who did not give them sufficient priority. Meanwhile, we thank Speaker Carl Heastie and his colleagues in the Assembly for championing both the DREAM Act and the minimum wage increase, and we look forward to working closely with them on both items moving forward.

"On education, parents and teachers appear to have warded off the worst of Governor Cuomo's draconian education reform proposals. Still, much work remains to address the equity gap that plagues high-needs school districts in New York City, Long Island, and beyond-which will remain vastly under-funded until further aid is approved. We're also hopeful that the de Blasio administration's Renewal School and Community School plans receive the resources and time necessary to be successful."

"Meanwhile, we are pleased that certain key provisions were included in this budget for LGBTQ New Yorkers and tenants. LGBTQ New Yorkers will benefit from an access to condoms provision that will prevent the use of condoms as evidence in prostitution cases, providing an important protection for transgender New Yorkers all too often harassed by law enforcement agents. The funding of the Tenant Protection Unit will ensure a critical layer of security for New York tenants. The next step for tenants will be the fight to pass strong regulations by June 15th, which will animate much of the discussion in the streets of New York and in Albany in the coming months."