SAY NO TO STATE-SPONSORED ABORTION

Beneath the technical language of New York’s pending State Fiscal Year (FY) 2027 budget (covering April 1, 2026–March 31, 2027) lies a major policy shift that many New Yorkers may not realize is happening at all.

What is unfolding in Albany is not a single transparent vote on abortion funding, but a quiet, cumulative strategy to entrench abortion as a permanent, taxpayer-funded priority in New York State. Through the Executive Budget process advanced by the administration of Governor Kathy Hochul—and amplified by coordinated advocacy campaigns—tens of millions of dollars are being proposed, renewed, or expanded across multiple programs that collectively total roughly $100 million in abortion-related spending. Some components, such as the Reproductive Freedom and Equity Program (RFEP), have already been enacted in prior state budgets, while others are being pushed as “must-fund” priorities in the FY 2027 budget negotiations without standalone bills or clear public debate, including:

• A $35 million state “backfill” to replace lost federal Medicaid funding for Planned Parenthood and affiliated abortion providers

• An increase to $30 million annually for the Reproductive Freedom and Equity Program, expanding taxpayer-funded abortion grants

• $20 million in sustained funding for medication abortion and care later in pregnancy, despite ongoing concerns about Medicaid reimbursement structures and oversight

• $15 million in continued capital and infrastructure funding for abortion providers, including facility upgrades and debt retirement under the Reproductive Health Care Improvement Program

Together, these items are being advanced through the state budget appropriation process rather than through discrete legislation, limiting transparency and shielding the scale of abortion-related spending from direct public scrutiny.

This piecemeal approach obscures the true scope of state involvement in abortion, shields lawmakers from accountability, and steadily diverts scarce public resources away from life-affirming supports like prenatal care, adoption services, and assistance for mothers in need. Voters and legislators who oppose abortion should recognize this moment for what it is: a deliberate effort to normalize, expand, and publicly finance abortion through the budget process—and they should say no before these priorities become permanently embedded in New York State law.