NY Governor Drops Support for Dream Act in State Budget

In case you haven’t been following recent developments in New York, this past week Governor Andrew Cuomo decided to drop his support for the Dream Act, which until this point had looked to be a part of the future NY budget. Sadly, once again partisan politics trumps doing the morally right thing, which in this case is supporting young people trying to get a descent education who have been denied due to their immigration status. You can learn more about the work to support the Dream Act here, and New York specific efforts here. Also, read more about the Dream Act Hunger Strike which began today, including ways to get involved in supporting Dreamers here in NYC.

Students rally at 250 Broadway and call on Governor Cuomo, Speaker Carl Heastie, and Senate Leader Dean Skelos to keep New York State DREAM in the budget. (Source: www.thenyic.org)

Here’s a short excerpt from recent NY Times coverage on the issue.

After Republican and Democratic leaders could not agree on a proposal that linked immigration reform with an education tax credit in Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo’s proposed budget, the governor said on Tuesday that both would be dropped as negotiations continued. His statement and the impasse in Albany signaled yet another dead end for the Dream Act, the measure that would allow high school graduates who are undocumented immigrants to apply for state financial aid for college.

You can read the full story here: Cuomo Drops Dream Act and Education Tax Credit From Budget.