Some good steps forward, but work remains.
Dear New Yorkers,
Last night, the New York City Council voted to approve the FY 2023 budget. In this critical moment for our recovery amid economic uncertainty, New York City needs a budget that focuses on the basics, invests in an inclusive and thriving future, and prepares us for the economic road bumps that lie ahead. This budget takes some good steps forward in key areas, but on others—like preventing cuts to our public schools—it does not meet the moment.
While our city has begun to see many encouraging signs of resurgence—from increased subway ridership to a rebounding tourism sector—there are also reasons for caution. We must be adequately prepared to protect essential services and the most vulnerable in an economic storm. That’s why my office advocated for a significant deposit into the City ([link removed]) ’s Rainy Day Fund. ([link removed])
In the final budget, the Mayor and the Council deposited an additional $1.5 billion in the City’s long-term reserves (the Revenue Stabilization Fund and Retiree Health Benefits Trust), below the $1.8 billion we recommended, but still a substantial amount. Going forward, we recommend that the City adopt a set formula to guarantee annual deposits and establish rules for withdrawals to guard against devastating cuts in a potential recession, which could be on the horizon sooner than we would hope.
The FY 2023 budget takes critical steps to put NYC back on strong footing, including investments in summer youth jobs, community violence prevention, and restoring pandemic cuts to sanitation services as we shared over the weekend. In our survey and townhalls across the city, we heard from New Yorkers concerned about the cleanliness of our streets, and this funding is an important piece of ensuring our city’s recovery gets the basics right.
One victory my office helped secure, alongside ([link removed]) Council Members Tiffany Cabán and Shahana Hanif ([link removed]) , was a $10 million dollar fund for the Care for All Families campaign to include undocumented children in our early childhood safety net. This is a win for immigrant families who can more easily balance work and care, while their children benefit from early enrichment.
On the other hand, with median asking rents spiking and affordable housing availability shrinking drastically, our housing crisis should be top priority. This budget fails to meet the needs of this urgent moment with the level of capital funding needed for affordable, supportive and public housing.
Lastly, I want to highlight one key place that the budget falls short.
Our schools have endured the hardest two years and need every penny to provide the social, emotional, and academic supports that all our students deserve this summer and fall. Yet the DOE is making cuts, totaling in the millions, to individual school budgets—despite the fact that they have several billion dollars in unspent federal stimulus funds ([link removed]) . Over the next year, we will need to address enrollment declines and should revisit the Fair Student Funding formula. But we should not be forcing schools to implement sharp cuts to their budgets this summer.
My team and I will be reviewing all the details of the budget in the coming weeks, and we’ll be paying particular attention to DOE spending to ensure that the federal funds we have are put to the best use to support our students.
Budgets show us where our priorities lie. Together, we must continually orient our priorities toward building a stronger, more just, and inclusive recovery for all New Yorkers.
Onwards,
Brad
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