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New York State has long been positioned as a relative beacon for queer and transgender people in the U.S., boasting some of the most robust protections for LGBTQ+ people in the country. Decades of organizing work paving the way, and still, the effects of President Donald Trump’s federal anti-trans directives are evident. That’s why queer and trans advocates were taken aback when New York State’s 2027 fiscal year budget reflected no funding for a new gender-affirming care fund, among other glaring omissions for queer and trans resources, despite spending months fighting for increased budget. 

When New York Governor Kathy Hochul, a Democrat, signed the fiscal year 2027 state budget on May 27 — allocating no money for a gender-affirming care fund for transgender New Yorkers, no increase for programs serving the state’s homeless youth, who are disproportionately queer, and no increase for TWEF, which funds trans-led community organizations — Alex Roque, president of the Ali Forney Center, was stunned. 

“A surprise is what I want on my birthday; a shock is when you get devastating news, and you have an accomplice reject that opportunity to make a difference,” Roque tells Them. “It was a huge blow, and it’s a blow that’s exacerbated by the current climate that we’re in. It was just a moment of really questioning who our governor is.”

Since Trump returned to office in 2025, queer and trans advocates have had to fight back against myriad attacks on queer and trans rights. This February, major New York City hospital systems, including NYU Langone Health and Mount Sinai Health, both stopped providing gender-affirming care to minors, following months of pressure from the Trump administration. In May, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Texas sent a grand jury subpoena to NYU and other hospitals for records of patients under 18 who have received gender-affirming care. Grand jury subpoenas are issued in criminal investigations.  The federal government has demanded patient records between 2020 and 2026. Because of proposed threats to end Medicaid coverage for gender-affirming care for trans adults in other states, advocates have urged New York officials to establish funding frameworks that prepare for the worst-case scenario. 

LGBTQ+ advocates sought millions in new funding

Organizers from across the state tell Them that they have seen a stark increase in trans people unable to access gender-affirming care and LGBTQ+ youth experiencing homelessness in need of housing. In response, representatives from major organizations such as the Ali Forney Center, The New York Lesbian, Gay Bisexual & Transgender Community Center, and the New Pride Agenda spent months urging state officials to increase funding for queer- and trans-specific resources to mitigate Trump’s attacks. Specifically, organizers tell Them they asked for $8 million in funding to establish an emergency gender-affirming care fund, $10 million for the Lorena Borjas Transgender Wellness and Equity Fund (TWEF), and over $10 million for the state’s Runaway and Homeless Youth (RHY) fund. 

Hochul’s budget leaves gender-affirming care requests unmet

Within the $268.5 billion budget, Hochul approved $4.75 million in sustained funding for the existing Lorena Borjas Transgender Wellness and Equity Fund, which supports more than 20 trans-serving organizations across New York that help with housing, legal aid, healthcare, and workforce development services. The budget also included $1.8 million in expansion funding for a new 24/7 LGBTQ+ crisis hotline via 988. The Trump administration ended the LGBTQ-specific “press 3” crisis line option in 2025 as part of the administration’s push to eliminate diversity, equity, and inclusion programs. Of the $8 million+ advocates asked for in state funding to establish an emergency gender-affirming care fund, none was allocated.