Funding for the City University of New York—CUNY—is a critical issue in this final stage of the State budget negotiations. As the PSC was holding a die-in outside Governor Cuomo’s office on March 24, the Governor announced that he had reversed his position: he is no longer calling for a “cost-shift” of $485 million to New York City; the State will fully fund $1.6 billion for CUNY senior colleges.   

The announcement was a breakthrough—but it is not enough. By restoring the $485 million to the State budget for CUNY, Cuomo simply solves a manufactured crisis and restores CUNY to austerity: the $1.6 billion does not include a single penny for retroactive raises.  

Tell Governor Cuomo: CUNY needs more State funding to protect quality, freeze tuition and resolve the contract for it's 25,000 faculty and staff.