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1. Early Voting Begins Early voting for this year’s primary elections begins on Saturday, June 13 and runs through June 21. CSEA has made several endorsements, including Tom DiNapoli in his reelection for State Comptroller. CSEA is proud to endorse Tom because he has consistently protected our pensions, stood with working people, and provided strong fiscal oversight for New York State. Hundreds of thousands of CSEA members and retirees depend on the retirement security he helps safeguard. If you haven’t made a plan to vote, now is the time. Whether you vote during early voting or on Primary Day, June 23, make sure your voice is heard! |
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2. NY HELPS Extended The Department of Civil Service has announced that the NY HELPS Program will be extended through June 2028. This program streamlines the appointment process to allow State agencies to hire permanent employees quickly. Local civil service agencies are able to opt in to this program. Currently, more than half of the state’s 95 local civil service agencies are participating to help fill positions in counties, cities, towns, villages, school districts, and other civil divisions. |
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3. Social Security The 2026 annual report of the Social Security trustees released this week shows a worsening outlook for the Social Security Program’s finances. Without action to shore up Social Security in the coming years, the program will be forced to make deep across-the-board cuts in benefits for retirees, people with disabilities, and survivors whose family member has died, putting a particularly large burden on people with low incomes. According to the report, the Social Security Program will only have enough funding to pay about three-quarters of promised benefits after 2032. Notably, the passage of the federal reconciliation bill last year worsened Social Security’s outlook in both the short and long term. |
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4. Faster Labor Contracts Act Twenty House Republicans broke with Speaker Mike Johnson to help pass a Democratic-led bill Tuesday aimed at making it easier for workers to form unions. The Faster Labor Contracts Act aims to reduce the amount of time between workers voting to form a union and negotiating their first collectively bargained contract, in part by requiring the parties to more quickly enter federal mediation. New York Republicans Garbarino, LaLota, Langworthy, Lawler, and Malliotakis joined all Democratic members of New York’s Congressional delegation in voting in favor of the bill. The legislation passed the House of Representatives 230-193. It is unlikely that the U.S. Senate will take up this legislation. |
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5. CSEA Legislative Toolkit We’re updating materials on our 2026 legislative session victories. These will be available soon! A summary of the FY 2027 New York State Budget is available here. |