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LiveOn NY Response to the New York State Budget
New York, NY – This week, the State of New York released its Fiscal Year 2027 State Budget. LiveOn NY released the following statement:
"New York's $268 billion budget tinkers at the edges while older New Yorkers wait for real change. Hundreds of nonprofit organizations across the state are being asked to do everything with nothing to meet the needs of our rapidly aging population, and the state missed an opportunity to deliver for them with its own Master Plan for Aging.
Some wins in this budget demonstrate a growing recognition of the need. In doubling the funding for N/NORCs, the state has acknowledged the value of formal infrastructure to support people growing older in their homes and communities. This investment will expand an excellent evidence-based and inexpensive framework for community service delivery.
Similarly, increasing the eligibility for SCRIE as well as other reforms to modernize the rent increase exemption program will help many older New Yorkers stay in their homes. Our members serve older folks every day who are one rent increase away from eviction and we are thankful the state has enacted efforts to address this.Two things can be true: these investments will be life-changing for thousands of New Yorkers, and they are tiny compared to what our state needs.
New York is putting band-aids on a crisis. Failing to fund Proposal 50 of the Master Plan on Aging – Funding Aging Services – means that older New Yorkers will not have the evidence-based preventive care that would save us billions on Medicaid. It means that the state has decided to prioritize for-profit institutional care, and the private equity firms which profit from it, over the community care that we need. It also means that tens of thousands of New Yorkers opt out of the workforce or struggle to keep their jobs because they can’t find common-sense , affordable and community options (like Meals-on-Wheels and case management) for aging family members.
We have solutions that work– and yet budget after budget we are choosing to ignore the needs of not just older New Yorkers, but the daughters and sons who quit their jobs, deplete their savings, and sacrifice their futures to fill the gaps the state refuses to close.
The state spent years working with stakeholders on the Master Plan for Aging – and it’s unconscionable to have no clear path towards implementing the over one hundred validated and approved recommendations. A Master Plan without implementation is just a document. LiveOn NY will continue to fight for huge systemic change because this is unacceptable to us, to our hundreds of member and partner organizations who serve thousands of older adults in crisis, and the millions of older New Yorkers who built our state."
Councilmember Susan Zhuang Join Hundreds Of Older New Yorkers To Demand $2.3B Aging Investment In City Budget
Older adults make up 20% of New York City's population, yet programs that support New Yorkers as they age will receive less than 0.5% of the city budget
(New York, N.Y.) — The Age Strong New York Campaign, a coalition of older adult advocates including LiveOn NY, Encore Community Services, HANAC, AARP New York, and others, rallied with Councilmember Susan Zhuang and hundreds of New Yorkers at City Hall Park on Wednesday morning to call for the investments that older New Yorkers need to Age Strong in the communities they helped build.
Older adults and family caregivers were largely absent from the Mayor’s Executive Budget, despite older adults poverty surging by nearly 50 percent in the past ten years. Demand for affordable senior housing continues to rise sharply while production remains nearly flat. At the same time, nearly 4 million family caregivers across New York are struggling to support aging loved ones while juggling work and rising living costs.
"New York City's older adults built this city; they deserve to age in it with dignity. The affordability crisis is not abstract for older New Yorkers, it means skipping meals, losing housing, and facing their final years in isolation. As Chair of the Aging Committee, I am standing with advocates to send a clear message. We must prioritize the needs of New York’s 1.7 million older adults.” said Council Aging Chair Susan Zhuang.
Advocates highlighted the Age Strong NY policy agenda, which calls for $2.3 billion in investments to support older New Yorkers, including:
$500 million for nutrition and wellness programs, including expanded home-delivered meals, meals at Older Adult Centers, and outreach to ensure eligible older adults receive SNAP benefits.
$800 million in community support, including funding for Older Adult Center infrastructure, mental health services, and programs that drastically reduce the growing crisis of older adult social isolation.
$1 billion in affordable housing investments to expand senior housing development through the SARA program to address the senior housing and homelessness crisis, preserve crumbling HUD 202 buildings, and continue to freeze the rent for older New Yorkers in need through the Senior Citizen Rent Increase Exemption (SCRIE) program.
Advocates also called for targeted investments to strengthen programs older New Yorkers rely on every day, including $30 million to ensure home-delivered meals are available seven days a week, $60 million to increase congregate meal funding, and $10 million to expand Naturally Occurring Retirement Community (NORC) programs in neighborhoods across the five boroughs.
Older New Yorkers deserve to age with dignity in the communities they helped build,” said Council Member Shahana Hanif. “Across Brooklyn, older adults are facing rising rents, food insecurity, and growing isolation while critical services are stretched thin by increasing demand. Programs like older adult centers, home-delivered meals, supportive housing, and SCRIE are lifelines that keep seniors connected, healthy, and housed. I’m proud to stand with LiveOn NY and advocates across the city in fighting for the investments needed to build an Age Strong New York.”
“New York City is aging faster than ever, and this budget isn’t keeping up,” said Allison Nickerson, Executive Director of LiveOn NY. “Despite claims of increased funding, this budget contains cuts, and hardly acknowledges older adults. At a time when more than 550,000 people remain on waitlists for affordable senior housing, senior housing production and preservation is not keeping pace. We're,. calling for $2.3 billion to fully fund aging services in New York City, including affordable housing, community services and supports and nutrition.”
“Older New Yorkers make up 20 percent of this city, yet the Department for the Aging receives less than half of one percent of the budget,” said Beth Finkel, State Director of AARP New York. “Budgets reflect priorities, and right now older New Yorkers are not being prioritized. At a time when poverty among older adults is rising and the need for services is growing, New York City must invest in the housing, nutrition, and community services that allow older adults to age with dignity in the neighborhoods they helped build.”
“Encore Community Services is proud to stand with LiveOn NY and the Age Strong NY coalition to call for a city budget that meets the real needs of older New Yorkers,” said Jeremy Kaplan, CEO, Encore Community Services. “Across our city, older adults are facing an affordability crisis that threatens their ability to remain housed, healthy, nourished, and connected to community. We urge the City to invest in the full continuum of services older adults need, including home-delivered and congregate meals, case management and Older Adult Centers. At Encore, we know that when New York invests in older adults, it invests in stronger neighborhoods, healthier families, and a more affordable city for all.”
Advocates urged City leaders to ensure that the budget reflects the needs of New York City’s growing older adult population and strengthens the services that allow residents to age with dignity, independence, and stability in their communities.
About LiveOn NY
LiveOn NY is a policy and advocacy membership organization representing more than 100 community-based organizations serving over 300,000 older New Yorkers per year. Our members allow all of us to age in dignity, providing senior centers, congregate and home-delivered meals, affordable senior housing with services, elder abuse prevention services, caregiver supports, case management, transportation, and NORCs. LiveOn NY advocates for increased funding for these vital services to help ensure that . For more information, please visit our website, https://www.liveon-ny.org/
LiveOn NY Response to the New York City Executive Budget
New York City is rapidly aging, yet older adults and family caregivers remain largely absent from the Mayor’s Executive Budget. Once again, the City has failed to meaningfully address the realities older New Yorkers face every day, while the Department for the Aging continues to receive less than one-half of one percent of the City’s total budget.
These funding gaps have meaningful consequences. Homebound older adults go without adequate nutrition because the City funds only five Meals-on-Wheels deliveries per week. Older adults cycle in and out of hospitals because they lack community support. Family caregivers face long waitlists for bilingual services, while frontline aging workers, including transportation staff, cooks, and social workers, continue earning poverty-level wages under City contracts.
Without adequate investment, older New Yorkers face eviction, lose access to healthcare, or enter the homeless shelter system simply because community-based supports are unavailable or underfunded.
It does not need to be this way.
We know investments in aging services work. Community-based programs reduce avoidable hospital readmissions, EMS calls, and Adult Protective Services interventions while helping older adults remain healthy, connected, and safely housed. More than that, these investments reflect whether New York City values our dignity and humanity as we age.
A city budget is a statement of priorities, and this Executive Budget makes clear that older New Yorkers are still not being prioritized. Despite claims of increased funding, the budget contains cuts, and older adults were barely acknowledged at all. And at a time when more than 550,000 people remain on waitlists for affordable senior housing, senior housing production and preservation is not keeping pace.
At LiveOn NY and across our member agencies, we are ready to work with Mayor Mamdani to build a city that reflects the needs and dignity of older New Yorkers. But those commitments must be reflected in policy, funding, and action.
Older New Yorkers and family caregivers cannot continue to be treated as an afterthought. LiveOn NY’s Age Strong campaign is calling for $2.3 billion to fully fund aging services in New York City, including affordable housing, community services and supports and nutrition. More information can be found on the Age Strong NYC website: https://www.liveon-ny.org/city-advocacy
NCOA Recognizes LiveOn NY's Critical Benefits Work With Funding award
We are proud to announce that LiveOn NY has been selected as one of 90 grantees nationwide to receive funding from the National Council on Aging (NCOA) as a member of NCOA’S national network of Benefits Enrollment Centers. LiveOn NY will receive support for our Benefits Outreach and Assistance program, which will support the vital work LiveOn NY does every day to connect older New Yorkers to the benefits they need to age in dignity.
Older adults across New York City are facing growing financial hardship. Poverty among older Americans has risen sharply in recent years, and New York is no exception. Many older New Yorkers are eligible for programs that could help cover the cost of food, healthcare, prescriptions, housing, and utilities, but they don't know these programs exist, or they face significant barriers to navigating the application process on their own.
Our Benefits Outreach and Assistance program works to ensure older New Yorkers can make ends meet through easy access to public benefits. We work directly with older adults, their families, and caregivers to assist in every step of the application and renewal process; we partner with community organizations and elected officials to host in-person and virtual outreach events across the five boroughs; and we provide training to help other organizations reduce the barriers that prevent older adults from accessing the benefits they need.
The Programs We Help New Yorkers Access
Our benefits counselors are experts in a wide range of programs, including:
SNAP
Medicare Savings Program and Low Income Subsidy
Medicaid
SCRIE and DRIE
HEAP
SCHE and STAR
Lifeline
Get Help or Get Involved
If you or someone you know may be eligible for benefits, our team is here to help. Contact our Benefits Outreach program at (212) 398-5045 or benefits@liveon-ny.org, or complete our confidential online benefits eligibility screening at liveon-ny.org.
Organizations and elected officials interested in partnering with us to host a benefits outreach event can also reach out to our Director of Benefits Outreach, Kim Lerner, at klerner@liveon-ny.org.
LiveOn NY Statement on One House Budget
On March 10, the New York State Assembly and Senate released their “One-House Budget,” outlining the Legislature’s response to the Governor’s proposed FY2026–27 State Budget…
On March 10, the New York State Assembly and Senate released their “One-House Budget,” outlining the Legislature’s response to the Governor’s proposed FY2026–27 State Budget. We are grateful that the State Senate included $25 million to support implementation of New York State’s Master Plan on Aging.
However, we are deeply disappointed that the Assembly did not include funding for critical aging initiatives, such as the Master Plan on Aging, the Senior Housing Resident Advisor Program, and elder abuse and financial scam prevention efforts.
Even more concerning, the Governor’s Office has continued to overlook the rapidly growing needs of older adults and family caregivers across the state. Currently, more than 70,000 services are waitlisted, including essential supports like Meals on Wheels, transportation, and case management. Older adults are struggling to meet basic costs of living, while family caregivers are forced to make impossible choices between maintaining employment and caring for loved ones. These challenges are further compounded by federal actions that threaten core supports, including proposed cuts to Medicaid, new work requirements for food assistance, and reductions in housing resources.
Governor Hochul has demonstrated strong leadership over the past year, standing up for communities during the federal budget shutdown, addressing SNAP delays, and advancing childcare initiatives. She has said that New York’s families are her fight — now she must demonstrate that commitment by fully including older adults and caregivers in that fight which starts by allocating $175 million to support community based aging programs through the New York State Office for the Aging.
New York is an aging state experiencing a longevity boom, yet our systems are not keeping pace. We call on the Governor and the State Assembly to follow the Senate’s lead by investing in practical, affordable, and cost-effective programs that enable older adults to age safely in their communities while supporting the families who care for them.
To participate in the final advocacy push, please see: