FINANCE

NEW YORK STATE SENATE AND ASSEMBLY HIGHER EDUCATION BUDGET HEARING — ALBANY — The state's two major public university systems presented their fiscal challenges and strategic priorities to the Legislature on Thursday, with SUNY Chancellor John B. King Jr. and CUNY Chancellor Félix V. Matos Rodríguez seeking sustained funding increases to address long-term structural deficits and rising operational costs. King reported that SUNY achieved its first enrollment growth in a decade, with overall enrollment up 1.1 percent and first-time undergraduate enrollment rising 4.3 percent from fall 2022 to fall 2023. He praised the Governor's proposed 2024-2025 budget, which includes $54 million in additional operating support and $650 million in capital investment. However, King warned that without continued revenue increases, SUNY faces a projected $1 billion deficit over the next decade due to rising costs, including $86 million in new expenses from a recently completed faculty contract with the United University Professions. Matos Rodríguez highlighted CUNY's economic impact, noting that the university's 50,000 annual graduates contribute approximately $70 billion in annual earnings to the state—nearly 5 percent of state GDP. He reported that CUNY researchers secured a record $638 million in external funding last year and received a $75 million gift from the Simons Foundation. However, CUNY continues to struggle with enrollment recovery, remaining 40,000 students below pre-pandemic levels, though recent enrollment has increased 2 percent. The university's structural deficit has been reduced from $234 million to a projected $128 million, but Matos Rodríguez emphasized that projected collective bargaining costs of $184 million will require additional state investment to maintain quality. Assemblywoman Patricia Fahy, chair of the Assembly Higher Education Committee, commended both chancellors for issuing fiscal reports detailing years of disinvestment and praised recent legislative investments. She highlighted the need for universal FAFSA completion and expressed hope that internship programs could eventually reach every student before graduation. Senator Toby Stavisky, chair of the Senate Higher Education Committee, pressed Chancellor King on the timeline and process surrounding SUNY Downstate's crisis, expressing concern that key stakeholders, including the state Health Commissioner, learned about the $300 million capital investment plan through media reports rather than direct notification. King acknowledged the long-standing challenges at Downstate and said discussions with Governor Hochul's office began after the university faced a $100 million deficit and projected cash depletion by summer. Both chancellors addressed campus safety concerns, noting increased hate incidents and antisemitism on campuses. King said SUNY has provided Title VI training to senior staff and deployed university police for additional security at campus events. Matos Rodríguez noted that CUNY has partnered with campus Hillels and worked with NYPD to ensure student safety while protecting First Amendment rights. The hearing, held February 8 in Albany, was the tenth in a series of joint fiscal committee hearings on the Governor's proposed budget. Additional testimony from faculty unions, student advocates, and other stakeholders was scheduled to follow. New York's higher education leaders faced pointed questioning from state legislators on February 8 over budget priorities, campus closures, and the controversial transformation of SUNY Downstate Medical Center during a joint legislative hearing on the 2024-2025 executive budget. SUNY Chancellor King and CUNY Chancellor Matos Rodríguez defended their systems' funding requests and strategic initiatives, but encountered skepticism from senators concerned about cuts to student aid programs and the adequacy of community engagement on major facility changes. The most contentious exchange centered on the proposed Downstate transformation. Sen. Stavisky, the Finance Committee chair, pressed Chancellor King on whether the plan would require a Certificate of Need from the Department of Health and a Health Equity Impact Assessment—regulatory processes typically required for major healthcare facility changes. King repeatedly deferred, saying these determinations would be made "in the coming weeks and months." Sen. Rivera directly challenged this evasiveness, calling the responses "truly unacceptable" and noting he has introduced legislation to require all institutions undergo the same regulatory processes. Sen. Jackson expressed alarm about the state's priorities, questioning why the Opportunity Program—which serves low-income students—faces cuts when New York has a $232 billion budget and $20 billion in reserves. "I think that we're in trouble," Jackson said, demanding "real talk" rather than "fluff" on saving Downstate. Chancellor Matos Rodríguez warned that without state funding for CUNY labor contracts, the system faces a structural deficit that could force staffing cuts. He noted that 85 percent of CUNY costs are personnel. The current budget includes no provision for labor contract cost increases, a departure from historical practice. On community colleges, Chancellor King acknowledged enrollment declines over the past decade but noted that the Governor's budget maintains a funding floor that protects against an $85 million cut. However, Assemblyman Smullen and others pressed for enhanced funding, particularly for workforce development programs. Chancellor King highlighted major research investments, including a $500 million gift to Stony Brook matched with state funds and a $10 billion investment at Albany NanoTech. He also noted SUNY's $8 billion capital backlog and requested a $100 million clean energy fund to advance sustainability goals. On antisemitism, Chancellor Matos Rodríguez described initiatives including an Advisory Council on Jewish Life, a campus climate pilot on seven CUNY campuses, and a new complaint portal. However, he acknowledged the portal was a "first step" and the system is procuring a more sophisticated instrument to track incidents and improve response times. The hearing revealed significant tensions between the executive branch's budget proposals and legislative priorities, particularly regarding student aid, community college funding, and the future of major medical facilities serving underserved communities. New York's higher education leaders faced intense legislative scrutiny on Wednesday over budget priorities and major restructuring plans, with lawmakers demanding greater transparency and community engagement on the controversial SUNY Downstate proposal. At a joint Senate-Assembly hearing on the 2024-2025 executive budget, SUNY Chancellor John B. King Jr. defended the $300 million capital investment plan to restructure the Brooklyn medical center, which faces a $100 million deficit. The plan would involve a 10-20 percent reduction in staffing—affecting 175 to 375 employees—and a potential shift toward ambulatory care in partnership with Health + Hospitals. But Senate Finance Committee Chair Liz Krueger demanded specifics, insisting the Legislature see memorandums of understanding between SUNY and H+H before approving the plan. "We really feel we need to understand because you've heard, people don't feel that you've spoken enough with the community," Krueger said. She also raised concerns about regional hospital impacts, noting that nearly 50 percent of Brooklyn residents seek care in Manhattan, and that closing Mount Sinai Beth Israel would further strain already-overwhelmed facilities like Bellevue. Sen. Gustavo Chu pressed King on the human cost of the restructuring, asking for specific job titles and positions affected. "Twenty percent, 10 percent, it's a number. What positions, what job titles are we talking about?" Chu asked, noting employees face losing pension benefits. On labor costs, CUNY Chancellor Félix Matos Rodríguez reported the system is requesting $184 million to cover labor contracts—$41 million for classified staff and the remainder for the Professional Staff Congress—due to lapsed negotiations. Lawmakers also pressed both chancellors on community college funding equity. Sen. Robert O'Mara noted the state contributes roughly $100 million less than counties to community colleges and questioned whether the system can move toward equal one-third funding. King said the community college presidents are requesting a $97 million increase focused on workforce development, while the current funding floor preserves $85 million that would otherwise be lost. Both chancellors highlighted workforce development initiatives, with SUNY reporting 600 microcredentials and 280 larger programs eligible for TAP across 30+ campuses. King also emphasized SUNY's role as the largest provider of higher education in prisons, noting dramatically lower recidivism rates for incarcerated students. Krueger also demanded greater financial transparency, requesting that SUNY and CUNY post staff salary information publicly—noting that nearly every other state agency does so—and requesting recent financial reports from both university foundations. The hearing underscored legislative concerns that major budget commitments lack sufficient detail and community input, particularly regarding the Downstate restructuring and its ripple effects across New York's hospital system. NEW YORK STATE SENATE FINANCE COMMITTEE — Lawmakers pressed higher education officials on Tuesday over funding cuts to tuition assistance programs and the financial crisis at SUNY Downstate Medical Center during a joint legislative hearing on the 2024-2025 executive budget. The hearing revealed significant tensions over the state's commitment to student financial aid. Assembly Education Chair Pat Fahy questioned why the Tuition Assistance Program (TAP) budget is being cut by $132 million to $764 million, even as enrollment at SUNY and CUNY campuses showed modest increases. HESC President Dr. Guillermo Linares defended the reduction, saying projections show the lower funding level will cover anticipated enrollment. However, Fahy noted that if TAP had been indexed to tuition increases since 2011, the program would require $1.3 billion annually—more than 70 percent above the proposed budget. Senator Toby Stavisky raised concerns about the adequacy of financial aid for independent students, whose income threshold has remained frozen at $10,000 annually for years. "In 2024, living on $10,000 a year? That's not below the poverty line, it's way under every other concept of society," Stavisky said. She also pressed Linares on whether students would be held harmless from repayment demands related to a TAP overpayment error discovered in 2021 that affected students across public and private institutions. SUNY Chancellor King faced intense questioning from Assembly members about SUNY Downstate, which faces a $160 million deficit stemming from its designation as a COVID-only hospital in March 2020. Assemblywoman Inez Forrest, a nurse, expressed frustration over the lack of clarity about the hospital's future, particularly regarding maternal health services. "I have heard my colleagues' questions, and I have been disappointed by the answers to the situation at Downstate," Forrest said, noting that Downstate operates Brooklyn's only Level IV NICU. Chairwoman Liz Krueger emphasized the need for more detailed community engagement plans regarding Downstate's future relationship with Health + Hospitals, saying current proposals lack specifics about whether the hospital would maintain its own emergency room or share one with Kings County Hospital. On a positive note, HESC reported that TAP has provided nearly $30 billion to more than 6 million New Yorkers since its inception 50 years ago. The agency also highlighted expansion of TAP eligibility to part-time students and those in non-degree workforce programs, as well as restoration of TAP funding for incarcerated individuals—a benefit denied since 1995. In 2022-23, 453 incarcerated students received approximately $5 million in TAP assistance. Linares also announced a major push to increase FAFSA completion, noting that nearly 50 percent of New York high school seniors failed to complete the form in 2022, leaving $200 million in federal Pell Grants unclaimed. The 2024-25 budget includes a near-mandate requiring school districts to ensure seniors or parents certify FAFSA completion or sign a waiver. The hearing underscored lawmakers' concerns that despite record investments in higher education operating budgets last year, financial aid programs are not keeping pace with rising costs and changing student demographics. New York State legislators heard urgent pleas for increased higher education funding during a joint budget hearing on Thursday, with testimony revealing deep financial pressures across CUNY, SUNY, and community colleges despite recent state investments. The Higher Education Services Corporation reported administering 28 scholarship programs, including the Excelsior Scholarship serving 29,000 students, but acknowledged the need to modernize the Tuition Assistance Program (TAP), which has remained largely unchanged for 25 years. Multiple legislators pressed for expanding TAP income eligibility and improving FAFSA completion rates, with $200 million in federal funds at stake if completion doesn't improve. CUNY's Professional Staff Congress President James Davis painted a stark picture of institutional strain, citing a net loss of 1,313 full-time employees from 2018-2022 despite hiring 575 new faculty. He described a crisis of student attrition and understaffing, with classes canceled within a week of semester start and full-time faculty laid off on short-term contracts. At Queens College alone, 26 full-time faculty were nonrenewed midyear, eliminating 104 class sections. SUNY's United University Professions President Frederick Kowal called for $139 million to address structural deficits at 18 campuses and strongly opposed the announced closure of SUNY Downstate Hospital, characterizing the plan as drafted in secrecy and harmful to Central Brooklyn's health and medical education. Community college representatives documented severe inequities: community college students receive $2,600 in state aid versus $19,000 for four-year SUNY students, despite educating 174,000 students—45 percent of SUNY's undergraduate population. The New York Community College Trustees requested $97 million in increased base operating aid to address a $2.5 billion disinvestment over 20 years. Senators Stavisky, Jackson, and Webb engaged substantively on TAP expansion, FAFSA completion barriers, and loan forgiveness programs for critical workforce areas including nursing and legal services. The hearing underscored legislative frustration with what multiple testifiers described as years of disinvestment and structural underfunding across the state's higher education system. The hearing was held February 8, 2024, before the Senate Finance Committee and Assembly Higher Education Committee. ALBANY — Union leaders and university officials clashed with state lawmakers Wednesday over the 2024-2025 higher education budget, with sharp criticism focused on the Cuomo administration's proposed closure of SUNY Downstate Medical Center and persistent underfunding of community colleges. Dr. Fred Kowal, president of the United University Professions union, condemned the Downstate closure plan as developed "in secret" without stakeholder consultation. He said he learned of the announcement via phone call at 9:30 p.m. on MLK holiday and disputed claims the hospital is deteriorating, noting it served as a COVID-only facility and contains brand-new sections including a transplant center. "It is not about to collapse. It is not falling to pieces," Kowal testified, adding the hospital currently serves over 200 patients and ranks first among 143 hospitals in percentage of Medicaid patients. Sen. Robert Jackson (D-Manhattan) delivered an impassioned plea, using metaphors of a "bucket" with water "poured out" to describe the hospital's plight. He urged union members to contact every state legislator and Gov. Kathy Hochul to pressure for a proper transition plan, warning that "it's going to cost more when people are dying, and people are going to lose their jobs." On community colleges, Mr. Craig Williams testified that the system receives only $2,600 in annual state aid per student compared to $4,750 for four-year SUNY students—a disparity he called inequitable given that community colleges serve higher percentages of low-income and minority students. Williams requested $97 million in additional funding to achieve a 50-25-25 funding model (state, county, student) and produce 20,000 career-ready workforce development students annually. Dr. James Davis of CUNY highlighted a retention crisis: community colleges lose 40 percent of students between Year 1 and Year 2, versus 20 percent at four-year colleges. He attributed this to inadequate resources for full-time faculty, mental health counselors, and academic advising. Sen. Lea Webb and other lawmakers questioned how previous capital allocations were distributed, with Kowal noting that the largest campuses received disproportionate shares despite smaller bases. The hearing underscored deep legislative frustration with both the Downstate closure plan and the structural underfunding of higher education that predates the current budget cycle. NEW YORK STATE SENATE FINANCE COMMITTEE — A joint legislative hearing on the 2024-2025 Executive Budget for higher education revealed sharp divisions over proposed cuts to student aid programs and ongoing frustration over stalled pension legislation for university police. The most contentious issue centered on the Governor's proposal to eliminate Bundy Aid for independent colleges with endowments exceeding $750 million. Lola Brabham, president of the Commission on Independent Colleges and Universities, warned the $18 million cut would affect 17 institutions and increase costs for students, noting that 46 percent of independent-sector endowment spending already goes to student aid. "New York should not be balancing its budget on the backs of these students," Brabham testified. The proposal drew skepticism from Sen. Toby Stavisky, who said she "still hasn't figured out the rationale" for linking endowments to student aid. University police leadership presented stark staffing data, reporting that SUNY has lost 200 officers in three years, with only 20 percent departing due to retirement. James McCartney, president of the PBA of New York State, described the situation as a "Groundhog Day" cycle: the Legislature passes a 20-year pension bill, the Governor vetoes it citing budget concerns, then the next year's budget is drafted without it. The pension has been vetoed three times despite 96 percent of other police and firefighters in the state already receiving 20-year pensions. Sen. Robert Jackson, who chairs the Civil Service and Pensions Committee, expressed skepticism about overriding the veto, telling McCartney: "I don't think that there is a willingness to attempt to override the Governor's veto at this point in time." Testifiers from graduate student unions, private colleges, and independent institutions united around expanding the Tuition Assistance Program, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary. Brad Hershenson, representing nearly 5,000 graduate students across SUNY, noted that the last TAP income threshold increase occurred in 2000 and called for restoration of Graduate TAP. Donna Stelling-Gurnett of the Association of Private Colleges estimated that expanding part-time TAP to proprietary college students would cost $5.5 million and affect approximately 2,500 students, framing it as an equity issue. Jennifer Tassler of the New York State Academic Dental Centers testified about oral health disparities for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities, noting that only 10 percent of general-practice dentists regularly treat such patients. She requested continued funding for a fellowship program launched in 2021 that has trained three dentists with a goal of supporting six annually. The hearing underscored tensions between legislative support for higher education funding and executive budget constraints, with multiple testifiers calling for increased investment in student aid programs and workforce development. NEW YORK — A joint legislative hearing on the 2024-2025 higher education budget revealed significant challenges facing the state's college system, from federal financial aid delays to chronic underfunding of student support programs. The hearing, held before the Senate and Assembly higher education committees, heard testimony from college administrators, student advocates, and nonprofit organizations about the cascading effects of the federal government's troubled FAFSA rollout. College financial aid offices cannot finalize aid packages or communicate with students because they won't receive data until mid-to-late March, witnesses said, disrupting students' ability to make enrollment decisions. "It's having a huge impact on our institutions," said Ms. Brabham, representing private colleges. "The financial aid offices can't finalize financial aid packages, get that information out to students." Beyond the FAFSA crisis, advocates pressed lawmakers to expand the Tuition Assistance Program (TAP), which has become the focal point of higher education funding debates. Blair Horner of NYPIRG called for raising the maximum TAP award to match SUNY tuition, expanding it to graduate students, and raising income thresholds. He noted that state policy has "destabilized" the public college system by decoupling TAP from tuition increases, creating what he called the "TAP gap." Student advocates testified passionately about specific needs. Arturo Soto, representing the CUNY Coalition for Students with Disabilities, urged lawmakers to fund CUNY's $7 million request for disability accommodations and ADA compliance. Alexandria Sisti, a SUNY Albany student from an underserved Long Island community, called for expanding the Excelsior Scholarship to its original $150,000 income target, noting that without such aid, "college would just be a fever dream." The Foster Youth College Success Initiative, which serves 1,148 students, received strong support. The program currently receives $7.92 million in the governor's budget, but advocates requested $10 million total. Data showed FYCSI recipients have higher retention and graduation rates than peers with foster care experience. On Point for College, a workforce development nonprofit serving rural and low-income students across Central New York, requested $500,000 in state funding—an amount it has never received in full. The organization has helped more than 4,500 students graduate since 1999, with graduates earning over $11 billion collectively over their lifetimes. Sen. Tom O'Mara raised concerns about delays in approving new academic programs at the State Education Department's Office of Professions, citing Keuka College's nursing program stuck in review for over three years despite a documented nursing shortage. He called for accountability measures. The hearing underscored persistent tensions between legislative priorities and executive budget proposals, with lawmakers signaling support for expanded aid even as they grapple with fiscal constraints. NEW YORK — A joint legislative budget hearing on higher education on Thursday highlighted persistent barriers to college access for disadvantaged students, with testimony focusing on the complexity of federal financial aid forms and the need for expanded student support services. Alexandria Sisti, a scholarship recipient, told lawmakers that many high school students—particularly those from immigrant families and those whose parents do not speak English—find the FAFSA form so confusing that they abandon college plans entirely. "I have friends that tell me all the time, they're like, I get no money but it's because I don't know how to fill it out properly, so I'll just pay for college out of pocket and be in debt for the rest of my life," Sisti testified. Assemblymember Chris Eachus, drawing on his personal experience with 13 foster siblings, called for greater promotion of the NY FAFSA READY program and emphasized the need for comprehensive support for foster youth in higher education. "So few foster students are able to be successful in college, and it really is an incredible area that we need to focus on," said Assemblywoman Jo Anne Simon, a former TRIO program director. Mr. Rowser of On Point for College described his organization's comprehensive approach to student support, including FAFSA completion assistance, transportation, and wraparound services such as pro bono dental care. He noted that On Point has not previously accessed federal TRIO funding despite a 98 percent success rate in applications, and called for the program to be expanded: "We need On Point everywhere." Assemblywoman Simon asked whether On Point could leverage federal TRIO funding to expand its reach, suggesting potential synergies with existing federal programs. The hearing, held before the Senate Finance Committee, is part of the legislature's review of the 2024-2025 executive budget. The next joint budget hearing, on mental health, is scheduled for February 13th.