This legislative session brought meaningful wins, but every victory NYSUT secures in Albany begins with our members.
When you share your stories about the realities you face each day in your classrooms, workplaces and personal lives, NYSUT carries your voices to decision-makers in the halls of power — and turns them into results.
From historic pension reform to landmark protections to keep our children safer online, we have much to be proud of.
These gains were made possible because NYSUT members showed up and showed strength through rallies, digital advocacy, phone calls, lobby days and countless other actions. Together, we’re paving a path to a better future for our profession, our students and our communities.
K-12
Universal Pre-K
What happened: The enacted budget increases UPK funding by $432 million, or 40 percent, making this one of the largest single-year investments in early childhood education in state history.
What this means: All districts will be required to offer full-day pre-K for every eligible four-year-old by the 2028–29 school year.
President Person says: “By increasing funding alongside new seats, the state is helping ensure programs are well-supported, embedded within public schools, and staffed by educators with the training and certification children deserve. That’s how we make sure every child enters kindergarten ready to learn. This is what it looks like to put families first and build a future rooted in opportunity and affordability.”
Funding Foundation Aid
What happened: The enacted budget funds the Foundation Aid formula with a $1.03 billion increase over last year, providing a two percent minimum increase for every school district. The formula has also been updated with the latest poverty and census data, changing the weighting of English language learners (ELLs) from .53 to .6 and adds a new weighting of .12 for homeless and foster care students.
What this means: NYSUT has long pushed for fully funding our public schools while modernizing the Foundation Aid formula so it better reflects the realities students and schools face every day. This year’s funding increase is another meaningful step toward a fairer system.
Teacher Centers
What happened: The budget includes $21.4 million for Teacher Centers statewide — institutions that provide educator-led professional development and are closely tied to the union movement. An additional $368,000 is included for the National Board Certification program, which supports teachers seeking the profession's highest credential.
What this means: Investing in our teachers by offering high-quality professional learning and mentoring at a low cost helps to keep teachers in the profession and in our schools. Continued support for teacher centers is vital to supporting our most vulnerable students.
Freedom to Read
What happened: The New York State Assembly and Senate both approved the Freedom to Read Act, which now goes to the governor for her signature.
What this means: We’re not over the finish line just yet. Last year, the governor vetoed an earlier version of this bill, and so we will continue urging her to sign the revised legislation before the end of the year.
Electric School Bus Mandate
What happened: The enacted budget extends the implementation deadline for zero-emission school buses by five years. The July 1, 2027, deadline for newly purchased or leased school buses has been moved to July 1, 2032, and the July 1, 2035, deadline for all school buses operating in the state to be zero-emission has been moved to July 1, 2040.
What this means: New York's commitment to a cleaner future is the right one. But the timeline for transitioning school bus fleets to zero-emission vehicles isn't matching reality on the ground. The five-year delay will allow districts more time and flexibility to budget responsibly, build out charging infrastructure and develop real transition plans.
Higher Education
Funding
What happened: The budget provides significant new operating investments across New York's public higher education systems.
- Operating aid to SUNY increases by $49.3 million.
- Operating aid to CUNY increases by $69 million.
- SUNY community colleges receive an $11.5 million increase in base aid.
- CUNY community colleges receive $7.3 million increase in base aid.
Additionally, the enacted budget provides $80 million in debt-service relief for the three SUNY hospitals, $100 million in operating aid for SUNY Downstate, and $150 million in capital funding to be divided among the three teaching hospitals.
What this means: These investments support the faculty and staff who make these institutions run, as well as the students who are the future of New York's economy and workforce.
Reconnect
What happened: Funding for the SUNY and CUNY Reconnect program is significantly expanded in this budget, totaling $63.8 million. The program covers students aged 25 to 55 who are enrolled at a New York state two-year or four-year public institution of higher education in an approved program leading to an associate degree in a high-demand field. New eligible fields include air traffic control, logistics, transportation, and emergency management. Students who already hold a post-secondary degree are also now eligible, provided they enroll in an approved program leading to an associate degree in nursing.
What this means: SUNY Reconnect is a bold step toward making higher education truly accessible. By removing financial barriers, it gives thousands of New Yorkers the chance to return to school, build new careers in high-demand fields and strengthen their families.
Student Health and Safety
Online Safety
What happened: Building on NYSUT's successful push for school cellphone restrictions, the budget incorporates key elements of the Stop Online Predators Act (SOPA), establishing default safety settings for minors on online platforms.
- Accounts for users under 18 are set to private by default.
- Strangers cannot message, view posts of, or tag minors in content without approval.
- Location display is disabled by default.
- Integrated AI chatbots and companions are disabled for child users.
- Parents gain new controls, including the ability to set spending limits and view transaction histories.
What this means: This is another important step in curbing the power digital platforms have over kids.
AI Chatbots
What happened: Building on NYSUT’s sustained advocacy around technology and student safety, this legislation bans operators of AI-powered chatbots from offering products to minors when those products include unsafe features.
What this means: The bill prohibits features that foster unhealthy emotional attachment or dependency, restricts outputs that could endanger minors, and bans content promoting sexually explicit behavior or other harmful actions. As AI tools become more present in students’ lives both inside and outside the classroom, this legislation ensures that safety — not engagement metrics — comes first.
Protecting Against Ghost Guns
What happened: The enacted budget bans convertible pistols and the sale or distribution of 3D printing codes for firearms. It also creates a working group to establish regulations for the sale of 3D printers with firearm blocking technology.
What this means: Banning 3D printers designed to manufacture firearms is a critical step to keep dangerous ghost guns off our community streets and out of the hands of our children.
Narcan
What happened: The legislation, which requires public schools and libraries to stock Narcan, a lifesaving opioid overdose treatment, has passed in both houses and awaits the governor’s signature.
What this means: Every second matters in an overdose. Narcan can reverse an overdose, but only if it’s accessible immediately. Equipping our buildings with Narcan can save lives in an emergency the same way EpiPens are used for allergic reactions and AEDs for cardiac emergencies.
Affordability, Worker Protections & Revenues
Expanded Tax Credit for Families
What happened: New York’s Child Tax Credit was raised to up to $1,000 per child under the age of four beginning in 2026, and up to $500 for school-aged children beginning in 2027, substantially increasing the previous maximum of $330.
What this means: More money in New Yorkers’ pockets to help families make ends meet.
Revenue (Pied-à-Terre)
What happened: Lawmakers approved a tax on ultrawealthy property owners who are rich enough to maintain a multimillion-dollar second home in New York City, one of the most expensive cities in the world, and may not pay city or state income taxes. The plan, which goes into effect on July 1 and will be instituted in two phases, is expected to generate as much as $500 million annually in new revenue.
What this means: The tax ensures that those who own luxury properties as their second homes are still fairly contributing towards the funding of public schools and services like every other New Yorker.
Union Impersonation Ban
What happened: Both houses passed legislation that explicitly prohibits falsely impersonating a labor union or an employee organization representative to deceive workers and disrupt union operations.
What this means: Pending the governor’s signature, this legislation will give NYSUT and its locals a direct tool to fight back against bad-faith efforts to divide our membership.
Workers' Comp
What happened: Legislation passed in both houses to amend the civil service law to allow public employees who suffer a work-related injury to use accrued paid time off while awaiting workers’ compensation benefits.
What this means: While the bill applies to all public employees, it will have the greatest practical impact on SRPs who need to weather a gap in pay.
Labor, Pensions & Retirement
Fixing Tier 6
What happened: Significant improvements to Tier 6 across the board with fixes that vary by specific retirement system:
- For Tier 6 members in NYSTRS and NYCTRS — a group that includes most teachers and teaching assistants — the retirement age will be reduced by five years, from 63 to 58, for members with 30 years of service (without penalties).
- For Tier 6 members in NYSERS, NYCERS and NYCBERS — many school-related professionals, support staff and other workers — contribution rates will be reduced across most salary bands (3–5.75% based on salary).
- Members of the SUNY and CUNY Optional Retirement Program (ORP) will have contribution bands adjusted to align with the changes above, and ORP members will receive an additional 1% state contribution to their accounts.
- For Tiers 5 and 6 members who receive overtime in pension calculations across all affected systems, the overtime ceiling used in final average salary calculations increases from $22,500 to $30,000, with 3% annual increases going forward. For State Police & Fire Tier 6 members, the share of overtime counted toward final average salary rises from 15% to 25% of salary.
What this means: Taken together, these are the most significant change we’ve ever had to Tier 6. TRS members will be able to retire half a decade earlier. For members in other retirement systems, lowering contribution rates will keep money in their pockets, paycheck after paycheck. Added to our fixes in previous years, we’re well on our way to fixing Tier 6, but we’re not done yet.
President Person says: “This victory belongs to every member who spoke out, rallied, lobbied, and kept the pressure on. We are taking an important step toward building a fairer future for the next generation of public workers. And we’re going to keep fighting."
Defending Retiree Healthcare Benefits (IRMAA)
What happened: The enacted budget preserves the Income Related Monthly Adjustment Amount reimbursement (IRMAA) for Medicare Part B for active or retired employees or their dependents in NYSHIP.
What this means: New York's public servants who have dedicated their careers to our students and communities will not see sudden spikes in their healthcare costs from the threatened removal of IRMAA from the budget.
What’s Next
This year’s budget demonstrates what’s possible when we use our collective power to fight for what students and communities deserve — and NYSUT members secured meaningful wins worth celebrating.
But the work is far from over. We must continue pushing for deeper reforms to Tier 6 that make public service a more sustainable career for the next generation; stand firm against private school voucher schemes that threaten to drain resources from public schools; and demand stronger charter school accountability and meaningful community input when new charters are proposed.
We must also increase funding to expand community schools across the state, a proven model for combating child poverty. And it is critical for New York to make significant investment in civics education and media literacy so our students can navigate a digital world shaped by AI, misinformation and constant online influence.
NYSUT will keep fighting to ensure every student, educator and community gets the support they deserve. And in an election year, we will harness our strength to make sure lawmakers seeking to keep their seats in the halls of power are listening.