Budget talks continue, now three weeks overdue, and the little information leaking out of the final negotiations between the governor and legislative leadership indicates that the last issue to be resolved is the Governor’s initiative to expand the terms under which New Yorkers might be subject to involuntary commitment.

We must do all we can in the last stages of these negotiations to stiffen the spines of our Senators and Assemblymembers in resistance to this unwise and unjust proposal.  Coercive interventions of this kind inflict trauma, worsen health outcomes, and impose high costs on the state.  Further, these involuntary commitments undermine individual rights, and they disproportionately affect marginalized populations, such as people of color and individuals experiencing poverty.

Rather than counterproductive, authoritarian measures, New York must address critical gaps in the community-based mental health system.  We propose a comprehensive package of community-based solutions that prioritize dignity, autonomy, and long-term stability.

Expanding voluntary services is the only path to a more just and effective mental health system in New York State.  We urge the prioritization of sustainable mental health investments and the rejection of ineffective, coercive interventions that harm rather than heal.

We ask that you contact your state legislators, as well as the Assembly Speaker and Senate Majority Leader, and urge them to stand fast against the Governor’s proposal in these final days and hours.