The Cross Sector Advocacy Group is a strategic working group of housing, mental health, substance use and criminal justice advocacy organizations.  Each quarter, P2PH and Legal Action Center (LAC) bring together partners with active budgetary and legislative campaigns at the local and state levels to share successes and coordinate priorities.

The 2025 Cross-Sector Advocacy Platform was developed for presentation to community partners, elected officials, journalists, and other key stakeholders. P2PH worked with members to identify key priorities across members for 2025 and beyond:

2025 Cross-Sector Advocacy Platform: New York City & State

Top Cross-Sector Priorities:
Together, the group identified three key cross-sector sectors to prioritize in 2025

• Enhance Medicaid Coverage for Individuals Leaving Incarceration

New York’s Medicaid Reentry Bill enables Presumptive Eligibility to expedite the Medicaid application and enrollment process and increase access to vital healthcare services during the transition from jail or prison back into the community.  This bill would ensure that all people leaving incarceration can connect to healthcare services, including making appointments with community-based providers and receiving critical medications to avert medical emergencies.

For more information on Medicaid reentry, visit the FAQ and interactive map developed by the Legal Action Center.

• Support the Human Services Workforce

The Mental Health Association in New York State (MHANYS) cites a 20%- 30% statewide vacancy rate and 35% annual turnover rate in mental health and addiction service agencies. Coalitions across the state are urging the governor to include a 7.8% increase to the human services COLA in the SFY 2025-26 Executive Budget. This COLA increase is crucial for behavioral health agencies to address the ever-increasing demands for services, mounting waitlists, and limited access to care.  Vulnerable New Yorkers deserve a fully-funded behavioral health system, and front-line staff deserve a COLA that acknowledges the effects of inflation in one of the most expensive regions in the country.

• Invest in Young People

The Youth Justice Opportunity Act would expand the youthful offender status to include those up to age 26, and the Youth Justice Innovation Fund would allocate $50 million and enable the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS) to issue grants directly to community-based organizations providing programming and services that help prevent youth arrest and incarceration.  Youth Represent is building support for these bills, which have been highlighted in the Bronx Times and ChalkBeat.

Additional priorities of the Cross-Sector Advocacy Group include:

Mental Health:

• Integrate Peer Specialists into the B-HEARD 911-response model
• Support the statewide expansion of mental health clubhouses
• Expand crisis response capacity through Daniel’s Law legislation
• Monitor the rollout of new crisis stabilization and respite centers

Substance Use:

• Advocate for proper implementation and reporting of MOUD in jails and prisons
• Monitor funding allocated from Opioid Settlement Funds Advisory Board
• Authorize and expand Overdose Prevention Centers statewide
• Expand Drug Checking access to reduce overdose fatalities

Housing:

• Protect access to housing by monitoring Fair Chance Housing implementation
• Amend homeless “chronicity” requirements to expand access to NYC 15/15 supportive housing for individuals leaving incarceration
• Expand JISH (Justice Involved Supportive Housing) capacity

Criminal Justice/Criminal Legal System:

• Ensure strong implementation of recent legislative achievements, including the HALT solitary confinement ban, Raise the Age and Clean Slate
• Improve access to community-based care through Treatment Not Jail legislation
• Establish a state Office of Pretrial Services
• Hold NYC to the Close Rikers 2027 timeline and cut the DOC budget
• Restore DOC funding for in-reach services to clients at Rikers
• Restore DOP funding for Arches and Next STEPS youth probation services