It did not come timely or easily, but New York Governor Kathy Hochul just signed the state’s 2025-26 budget, and the good news is that it contains several bright spots for the Orthodox community.

The budget contains a significantly enhanced Empire State Child Credit for parents; security and universal school food for yeshivas and nonpublic schools; and groundbreaking legislation for yeshiva autonomy. Agudath Israel is thankful to see many of its critical legislative priorities come to fruition.

Yeshiva Autonomy

Perhaps the most foundational legislation for the community this session is the bill newly defining safe harbors that nonpublic schools may avail themselves of to demonstrate substantial equivalency. “The autonomy and right for our schools to operate according to our mesorah (tradition) is of paramount importance,” said Avrohom Weinstock, Chief of Staff of Agudath Israel. “Agudath Israel played a significant role in this legislation, following its engagement in this effort for nearly a decade. This bill was a contentious, multi-year, uphill battle, and it is sure to have a lasting positive impact on many of our schools. We are especially appreciative of the government leaders who helped make this bill a reality: Governor Kathy Hochul, Senate Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, Assemblymembers Michael Benedetto and Simcha Eichenstein. We are also proud of the work that was done by a coalition of activists who worked tirelessly together with all of our champions in the Legislature to get this law enacted.”

Helping Families

Agudah hails the expansion of the Empire State Child Credit to a $1,000 tax credit per child for children under four and $500 for children ages four to seventeen for middle income families. The Empire State Child Credit has been a long-time priority of Agudath Israel, and its expansion is especially meaningful to communities like ours which tend to have large numbers of children. We are grateful that Governor Hochul shared this vision and made this expansion a priority, describing it in her State of the State address in January and inserting it into the executive budget. Agudath Israel also thanks State Senator Jeremy Cooney and Assemblymember Andrew Hevesi for introducing and championing this legislation.

Antisemitism

The budget increases penalties for criminals convicted of harassing or menacing while wearing a mask. Although the Agudah supported a more expansive version of this initiative introduced by Senator James Skoufis and Assemblymember Jeff Dinowitz, this legislation represents a substantive step toward combating the spate of masked intimidation we have witnessed targeting Jews.

Funding to Nonpublic Schools

On the fiscal side, the budget allocates over $400 million for nonpublic schools. Among the highlights are:

Security: With antisemitic hate crimes at record levels, the budget once again allocates to the NPSE (Nonpublic School Safety Equipment Grant) Program $70 million, a considerable increase over previous years. The budget also allocates $35 million for the Securing Communities against Hate Crimes Program which provides capital funding for security enhancements at schools, community centers, summer camps and other at-risk facilities.

Mandated Services: MSA (Mandated Services Aid) and CAP (Comprehensive Attendance Policy), a concept pioneered by the late president of Agudath Israel, Rabbi Moshe Sherer, z”l, is the primary funding vehicle for NY yeshivas and nonpublic schools. It reimburses schools for services they provide at the behest of the state such as attendance taking, pupil data, testing, and other items. After years of shortfalls, the budget allocates over $230 million. While we applaud the significant increase, it will still be insufficient to cover the full projected costs and prior year shortfalls. Agudah will continue to advocate for increased funding to fully compensate schools for the mandated services they perform.

In addition, STEM reimbursement, which has been a focus of Teach NYS, was increased to $85.5 million this year.

Universal School Lunch: School meals are one of the farthest-reaching anti-hunger programs for school-aged children, yet the free and reduced-price payment structure had left many students behind. This year, for the first time, New York State will be fully funding school lunch, so every child will be eligible for healthy, nutritious meals. Agudah was proud to be an active member of a statewide coalition advocating for universal free meals for the past three years. Credit goes to Governor Hochul as well as to Senator Michelle Hinchey and Assemblymember Jessica Gonzalez-Rojas, who were the legislative sponsors of this initiative.

This year’s legislative achievements are also a testament to the efforts of the many grassroots supporters who trekked to Albany with us during our advocacy days, met with legislators in the district, responded to our action alerts, and sent emails to their elected officials. Agudah is also privileged to work with other nonpublic school advocates such as Teach NYS and the NYS Catholic Conference.

“We are incredibly grateful for this budget”, said Rabbi Yeruchim Silber, Director of New York Government Relations, who led the Agudah advocacy efforts. “These legislative and fiscal gains will benefit families, yeshiva autonomy, and individuals across the state. Credit goes to Governor Hochul, Assembly Speaker Heastie, and Senate Majority Leader Stewart-Cousins for listening to the concerns of our community when passing this budget.”