FY2027 Updates
February 2, 2026 Update
Maryland Governor Wes Moore released his proposed FY2027 budget January 21. Similar to last year’s proposal, there are significant cuts proposed to services and programs for Marylanders with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities (IDD). However, unlike last year, these are targeted, rather than across the board cuts.
The focus of cuts are in three areas and total approximately $150 million in state general fund reductions. This increases to $300 million when federal Medicaid matching funds are taken into consideration.
Areas for Funding Cuts
- Dedicated Supports
Estimated Budget Impact:
$27.1 million in savings for the State of Maryland.
$54.2 million total with federal matching funds.
Dedicated supports are virtually always in the form of extra staffing from DDA organizations like Makom for people with IDD whose behavioral and/or physical health needs are extraordinary and, as such, are beyond ‘typical’ staff (Direct Support Professionals, or DSPs) support.
At Makom, we support 35 people who need these Dedicated Supports. The FY27 State budget proposal includes extensive training to DDA organizations, to Coordinators of Community Services (CCSs), and to DDA Regional Office staff (who review and approve requests for Dedicated Supports), and clarification and enforcement of rules that govern the use of Dedicated Supports. Makom is concerned that this may inadvertently impact people whose need for and use of Dedicated Supports is consistent with current rules and their complex support needs.
- Per Person Budget Cap
Estimated budget impact:
$66.1 million in savings for the State of Maryland.
$132.2 million total with the federal matching funds.
This is a policy change that would effectively “cap” budgeted costs of supports for each person receiving them from a DDA organization, as outlined in the person’s Person Centered Plan (PCP at $500,000. DDA is working with subject matter experts on developing an exceptions process that would allow a PCP budget to exceed $500,000 if the needs of the person can be legitimately shown to require the higher level of support.
At Makom, we support five (5) people whose annual PCP budgets exceed $500,000 per year. While we are confident that through the exceptions process we can clearly show the needs of these five people to require this level of support, we are modeling ‘hard’ caps at $500,000, which would represent a loss of $807k from those plans
- Self-Directed Services Usual & Customary rates
Estimated budget impact:
$62.3 million in savings for the State of Maryland.
$124.6 million total, including federal matching funds.
There are proposed changes to Self-Directed Services (SDS), including how wages are set for employees supporting individuals using this model. In essence, this policy change would base wage calculations in SDS on 2026 Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) wage data, and would limit exceptions (where a person using SDS can request to go higher in wages than the BLS wage).
At Makom, these reductions, using a conservative review of potential impact, could be as much as $2.2 million in our Maryland DDA funding, a cut of 8.4%. As is always the inevitable reality with this sort of cut to our revenue, there are few places to find cost savings outside of staffing–our employees–which represents about 81% of our total expenses. We are naturally concerned.
Next Steps
The Governor’s Office is taking a collaborative approach to budget discussions this year, a notable and welcomed change from its approach in 2025. Discussions are ongoing. The General Assembly will review the Governor’s proposal during the legislative session and may accept, revise, or reject specific elements. Some of these changes will require public input and federal approval before taking effect.
Makom is working closely with advocacy partners, the DDA, and state leaders to understand how these proposals could be implemented and who would be most affected.
As the budget process continues, we will share updates and invite our community to take direct advocacy actions. Your voice will be critical in the months ahead. Stay connected and be ready to speak up in support of our friends and family members with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
