Colleagues:
During this difficult time, we are attempting — through a variety of means — to keep membership as informed as possible on the many efforts UUP is collectively taking to advocate for each other. Daily, we are working together to fight for our members’ rights and protections, and more importantly — at the three SUNY hospitals —we are fighting for the health and safety of our members and their families. For many, it is a question of life or death. It’s that serious.
But, we must continue the work of our union, especially the many ways that we can improve our professional and personal lives. That’s why we are continuing advocacy to influence what is unfolding in Albany and Washington. Decisions are going to be made in both capitals that will go a long way in determining the future of our institutions and our work.
In the Coronavirus Era, we face the challenge that nearly all of our usual means of advocacy have been eliminated. We can’t gather in numbers to rally, we can’t meet with legislators, and we can’t organize in person in our communities to pressure the state. However, we continue to use other tools that we have developed extensively over the past 10 months to continue our work.
In the last month, our members have sent almost 2,000 postcards to the offices of Governor Cuomo, Assembly Speaker Heastie, and Majority Leader Stewart-Cousins. Additionally, our UUP staff — working remotely — is providing members with the ability to engage state leadership, as well as rank and file legislators, on social media and with letters from our Action Network digital letter campaign. Those letters and postcards continue with our messaging to #FundSUNYNow and #MakeBillionairesPay. We have also utilized traditional media to push the message that the present crisis points to the crucial role all of SUNY — including but not limited to its hospitals —plays in meeting the challenge of the Coronavirus.
In terms of what is presently happening in the state budget, as of this email there is no word when the Legislature will return to Albany, but we do know senior staff and the Division of the Budget are working on the budget. We continue to have conversations on the phone with legislators and their staff to press for our priorities. The fact is, all of them are telling us that both houses were prepared before the current public health crisis to pass a budget that would be much better than was expected in January. The present economic crisis unfolding daily has eviscerated that budget. That’s why we are advocating for funding and why we will keep up the efforts to seek out revenue through a Billionaires’ Tax and avert cuts to SUNY.
The reality is that the budget crisis about to hit New York could be much worse than that which we dealt with during the Great Recession. We must be prepared for that. We must also be prepared for the potential loss of enrollment should the economic crash be as bad as forecasted and should the Coronavirus continue to afflict our nation. That’s why getting as many members engaged in advocacy through the means we are employing is a necessity. Our issues must be front and center even during this painful and dangerous time.
That’s why we continue to work with our affiliates — NYSUT, PSC, the AFT, and the AFL-CIO. We are all on the same page: taxes need to be raised on the wealthiest, and the public institutions we all depend upon must be properly funded. One specific area where our common message may have direct and important impact is in staving off some of the proposed cuts that have come out of the Medicaid Redesign Team II (MRT II) that would affect our hospitals. Select funding pools for the SUNY hospitals, like the Indigent Care Pool and the Safety Net Hospitals programs, targeted for cuts in the MRT II recommendations, must be protected. And our partners at the AFL-CIO have joined us in fighting for such a result. Similarly, other cuts in the MRT II recommendations are being fought, with the hope that they could be offset by federal funding.
Speaking of federal funding, Congress is moving on a stimulus package that may help out with the economic devastation in New York. However, Governor Cuomo has come out against this version of the stimulus saying New York will receive only $3.8 billion and New York City receiving $1.3 billion. With a projected deficit running anywhere from $7-15 billion, it’s clear New York needs more. Senator Schumer who was the lead architect of the legislation, and others in the New York State Congressional Delegation, have stated that there will need to be additional packages, so we are hopeful the projected $7 – $15 billion budget deficit the state is facing can be bridged with more federal assistance.
You will find attached highlights of the federal stimulus package, the American Council on Education’s summary of Higher Education provisions included in the federal stimulus package, the MRT II Executive Summary, and the MRT II Executive Summary Score Card.
There is much to digest here, at the worst possible time. As many of us struggle with protecting our health and that of our loved ones, while also doing our jobs in situations that range from uncomfortable to unsafe, it’s not easy to consider the possibility of a massive economic collapse bringing real harm to our university. But, that is the world we have in 2020. Our UUP staff and I will continue to work with all of you to create and carry out multiple means of advocacy so as to lessen the negative impact of the financial crisis on our campuses, our colleagues and ourselves. This will not be easy or simple, but it will only be possible if we can engage as many of our fellow UUP members to advocate together for our future.
We will continue to keep you posted on what is happening with the budget and related areas of the legislative and political work many of us are engaged in. We’ve never faced a twin crisis like this before. The only way forward is for us to bring to bear the skills, the energy and the commitment for a better world. I’m confident that we will do so.
In the meantime, once again I urge you all to take care of your health and to stay in touch with your chapter leadership and with us in the statewide leadership. We need each other like never before…Stay strong and stay well…
In Solidarity,
Fred
Read the analyses and reports here:
CARES Act Higher Ed Summary
Federal Stimulus Highlights
MRT II Scorecard
MRT II Executive Summary of Proposal