State Budget Update
Three-way budget negotiations have been underway since late Saturday (3/14) afternoon. Leaders and their staff remain in Albany and are continuing negotiations. We now expect the budget to be acted on next week.
The Legislature is scrambling to identify plans on how to continue to work. There are currently four Assemblymembers who have contracted COVID-19.
We are continuing to urge leadership in both houses to reject Part R (the Medicaid amendments).
We can now state that the final state budget will include a 10% cut to local county mental health admin funds and while we tried to collectively advocate on a restoration to a 50/50 cost share with state on 730 competency, we can now project that the final budget will include a 100% cost shift to counties.
The state is looking at doing an omnibus provision within the state budget to extend all outstanding local home rule bills - sales tax, mortgage recording tax, etc. We now anticipate the budget being enacted next week.