2012 NSW Budget and citizens with disabilities

The NSW 2012-2013 State Budget was delivered yesterday. Allocations specifically directed to meeting the needs of people with disabilities appear to be consistent with the Stronger Together 2 (2012 - 2016) document released last year.

The Minister for Disability Services, Andrew Constance has released this statement about the budget and funding of disability services.

An outline of the NSW Council of Social Services (NCOSS) budget briefing delivered at a community Services forum today, can be viewed and/or downloaded here. Notations on disability-specific funding are on pp 21 - 25.

Every Australian Counts (campaign for a National Disability Insurance Scheme) commented today that the NSW budget has '... no new money allocated towards a launch site for the NDIS', and that '... the Productivity Commission said the the Federal government should fund the extra money required for the NDIS, BUT that states should contribute by cutting inefficient taxes. In effect the report argued that funding the NDIS should be a shared responsibility between the states and the Federal government. The Federal government will need to pay the lions share.'