Our population is aging. State aid isn’t keeping pace.

Older adults are the fastestgrowing demographic in New York state, making up nearly 18 percent of the state’s population. Older New Yorkers power local economies and contribute to our communities, yet the programs that support a growing and diverse aging population remain chronically underfunded. The state needs to make equitable investments to support New York’s aging population.

The demand for services has grown rapidly since the COVID pandemic began over three years ago — as have costs faced by nonprofits that serve older adults. For many community-based organizations, the inflationary costs for food, gas and other commodities have made it hard to meet the growing demand.

While Gov. Kathy Hochul has shown a commitment to older adults with her executive order to create a Master Plan for Aging, her executive budget this year does not reflect that commitment: Despite the growing need and the state’s seemingly solid fiscal footing, the New York State Office for the Aging received a 2.2 percent budget reduction.

To build a caring economy that supports all New Yorkers, we must address chronic issues affecting older adults, such as food insecurity and the shortage of home care workers. We must support nonprofits that run senior centers and provide home-delivered meals. We must invest in affordable senior housing. These are the social supports that enable older adults to stay in their homes and age in their own communities with dignity. And we cannot provide them without the state’s help.

As the chair of the state Senate’s Committee on Aging, I’m standing with community-based organizations and partners like Liveon NY to share this message: We can’t ignore older New Yorkers, who built this state and who still enrich our communities both financially and socially. This budget can begin the process of creating equity for older adults by recognizing their needs and potential, or it can push more people into greater need by pulling support from under their feet. The choice is now in the hands of the governor.