Current Position Papers

Access to Health Care

• Nearly 3 million New Yorkers are uninsured. The human suffering and economic losses created by this situation are enormous. We need universal access to quality, affordable health care for all New Yorkers.
• “Heal the hurt of my people” is a Biblical mandate. Bringing healing to the sick is a basic human obligation, attested to by both the Jewish and Christian Scriptures. As individuals of faith, we have a duty to help ensure that basic health care is available to every resident of New York State.
• We commend the legislature for funding in the FY2007-08 budget an independent study to review options for greater access to health care in New York. We urge an open process for review of this study and its economic models for health care coverage that includes public input from consumers, providers, and other stakeholders as part of the process.
• Health care must be accessible for all New Yorkers, and we urge you to commit to finding a workable solution that will provide access to quality, affordable health care for everyone in the state.

Support for Marriage Equality— A8590/S5884 ( passed by the Assembly)

• The civil right of marriage should be available to all in New York State regardless of gender.
  Religious marriage and civil marriage are different, and each religious group should be free to define marriage in its own way.
• Recognition of same sex couples to marry would have no effect on religious marriage. Any clergyperson who refuses to marry same sex couples would continue to be free to do so. It would, however, allow couples to enter into a legal marriage distinct from a religious marriage.
• Married couples receive over 1,600 legal protections, benefits and responsibilities; more than 500 are conferred by the state. Recognition by New York State of the right of same sex couples to marry would provide access to such rights as medical decision-making, inheritance rights, tax rights (especially regarding the transfer of property), and the right to make burial decisions, divorce protections, and the presumption of parenthood.
• The religious movements represented today support full equality for same sex couples under the law, including legal recognition of these relationships.
• We urge all state legislators to co-sponsor and vote in support of legislation supporting marriage equality and to oppose legislation that limits the rights of same sex couples.

Reproductive Health and Privacy Protection Act — S6045-A (no Assembly bill yet)

• Often clergy were those who witnessed firsthand the devastating effects that back-alley abortions and high-risk pregnancies had on women and their families.
• Clergy and lay leaders continue today in counseling members of our congregations when they struggle with an unplanned or high-risk pregnancy.
• Our religious traditions affirm that life is sacred, but different religious traditions have different beliefs about when personhood begins. Science, medicine, law and philosophy contribute to this understanding. Our shared scriptural traditions neither condemn nor prohibit abortion, but they do call on us to act compassionately and justly when facing difficult moral decisions.
• RHPPA (S6045-A) will protect a woman’s right to choose or refuse abortion or to choose or refuse contraception in New York State.
• RHPPA will move abortion concerns from criminal law to health law.
• The 1970 New York law legalizing abortion needs to be updated to protect serious threats to a woman’s health as well as the life of the woman.
• In the face of increasing federal attacks on reproductive rights, New York’s abortion laws need to be strengthened to reflect current medical practice thereby protecting women’s health and safety.
• The act will not force religiously affiliated doctors and hospitals to provide abortion services nor allow unqualified persons to do medical procedures. It will not legalize abortion through all nine months of pregnancy.
• No single religious voice can speak for all faith traditions on abortion and contraception. The government should not take sides in religious differences.  Women must have the right to apply or reject the principles of their own faith in this matter.

Dignity for all Students — A3496/S1571 (Passed by the Assembly)

• The Dignity for all Students Act would protect public school students from harassment and discrimination based on race, national origin, ethnic group, religion, disability, sexual orientation, gender (including gender identity and expression) and sex.
• Bullying is a serious problem in our schools as well as in the community.
  Public school students cannot afford to wait for the protections provided by this bill. Media reports of students committing suicide because of bullying confirm the need for us to take action.
• NYS Education Law has no explicit prohibition on harassment of any kind in primary or secondary education. We have a moral obligation to make sure our children feel safe in their schools.
• At least 10 states, including California, Maine, Minnesota and New Jersey, and many New York localities including Albany, Buffalo, New York City, Rochester and others have passed comprehensive anti-harassment measures.
• All private schools, including religious schools, are exempt from the law.

Support for the Healthy Teens Act — A2856/S1342 (Passed by the Assembly)

Other 2007/2008 Position Papers

2006 POSITION PAPERS

The position papers linked below were distributed to the legislators during the IINYS annual advocacy day in Albany on April 24, 2006 along with the following cover letter:

Dear Legislator:

     We are members of Interfaith IMPACT of New York State, a statewide coalition of mainline Protestant, Reform Jewish and Unitarian Universalist congregations, clergy and other individuals. We have come to Albany today from all across the state to advocate for policies that reflect our religious values concerning social and economic justice for all.

     We offer for your consideration the attached faith-based position papers in support of:

And opposing:

Our positions represent the moral and ethical views of constituents from across the state. Thank you for taking these important values into consideration as you make policy decisions for the people of New York.

Yours in Community,

The Members of Interfaith IMPACT of NYS

IINYS POSITION PAPER ARCHIVES