NYS Senator James Seward receives a Certificate of Appreciation for his service to agriculture from NEAFA President John Clark.
By Rick Zimmerman
Governor Cuomo and NYS lawmakers came to terms early April on a spending plan for the 2020-21 state fiscal year. Given the COVID-19 crisis, there was much speculation as whether there would even be a new state budget. Not only was it physically difficult for lawmakers to pass a spending plan, the pandemic also led to an increasing gap between revenues and expenditures. Suffice it to say, the process and procedure was quite unorthodox.
From an agricultural perspective, Governor Cuomo’s executive budget, released mid-January, contained an ag program spending plan that was positively received by agricultural leaders. Due to the Governor’s initial spending proposals, the annual process of restoring funding to the long list of ag programs became a bit easier this year. Assembly and Senate Agriculture Committee Chairs Donna Lupardo and Jen Metzger were optimistic that funding levels would be restored and perhaps increased in some cases. The ag community, including the Northeast Agribusiness and Feed Alliance (NEAFA), actively collaborated on the lobbying front to assure adequate funding for the essential programs including PRO-DAIRY, NY FarmNet, Integrated Pest Management, Farm Viability Institute, the Farm Labor Specialist, Cornell Veterinary Diagnostic Lab, among others. NEAFA’s February 4th lobby day at the NYS Capitol was a timely contribution to the ag lobby’s collaborative efforts to secure funding to these critical programs. Then the COVID-19 pandemic hit!
The state budget process ground to a halt when the Capitol was locked to outside visitors and the legislature had to figure out how to vote without being in the same room. Unfortunately, several lawmakers, including Senator Jim Seward, who was recognized by NEAFA in February for his outstanding service to agriculture, was stricken by COVID-19. Eventually, the voting rules were changed, and negotiations resumed between the legislature and the Governor’s Office. Lobbyists tried to follow along via emails, phone calls and texts. At the same time however, the state budget deficit continued to balloon from the original estimate of $5 billion to as much as $15 billion.
In the wee hours of April 3rd, the final budget bills were passed. As the dust settled, it became clear that unprecedented authority was granted to the Governor to adjust spending levels during the fiscal year, as determined by quarterly revenue forecasts that could change drastically due to the pandemic and the closure of non-essential businesses. Because of this, there is still a chance that agricultural program appropriations could be reduced from their current levels. Such actions will impact programs, people, and research that our industry depends upon. NEAFA and other industry leaders will continue to monitor the situation and fight for the funding that our industry needs.
Some agricultural programs took funding hits, particularly the Farm Viability Institute and the Veterinary Diagnostic Lab. A list of specific programs and their funding levels is available at the end of the article.
NY Agriculture Committee Chairs Senator Jen Metzger and Assemblywoman Donna Lupardo should be lauded for their tireless leadership and commitment to agricultural funding priorities. NEAFA appreciates their great work on behalf of the agriculture industry. In addition we recognize the NY Assembly and Senate agriculture committee members, including NY Senators Rachael May, James Skoufis, Robert Ortt, Pam Helming, and NYS Assemblymembers Aileen Gunther, Al Stirpe, Angelo Santabarbara, Carrie Woerner, Billy Jones, Marianne Buttenschon, Didi Barrett, Ken Blankenbush, Cliff Crouch, Gary Finch, Steve Hawley, Mike Fitzpatrick and Brian Miller for their ongoing support of New York’s agriculture industry.
New York Agricultural Program Funding:
Farm Viability Institute: $1.55 million Reduced by $350,000; Additional funds promised to restore to last year’s levels
Veterinary Diagnostic Lab: $4.632 million; Reduced by $200,000 over last year
PRO-DAIRY: $1.201 million Core Program
Profit Teams: $220,000
Dairy Acceleration Program: $700,000
Ag Nonpoint Source Pollution Control: $18 million
NY FarmNet: $872,000 / $400,000 Mental Health Component
Integrated Pest Management: $1 million
Pesticide Management Education Program: $250,000
Farm Labor Specialist: $200,000
Agriculture Education and Outreach Programs
FFA: $842,000
Agriculture in the Classroom: $380,000
Agriculture Educators: $416,000