After weeks of heated discussions about how New York City will spend its $112 billion budget for the upcoming fiscal year, and the specter of deep cuts to various programs pushed by Mayor Eric Adams, the City Council and the mayor finally reached an agreement on Friday. An additional $2 billion will be included in investments in public and affordable housing, as well as $20 million for early childhood programs.
With a handshake between the mayor and the head of the legislative body, and a toy airplane showing that they “landed on time” before the deadline, the leaders of the Big Apple announced a less austere plan than originally intended, after finding funds to restore some cuts in libraries, parks and school programs.
Both the Council Speaker and the Mayor, who were in the middle of a tough fight to define the destination of the resources that will move the City from now on and for the next 12 months, assured that the agreement reached will positively address several of the most important problems facing New Yorkers.
“This group of people and public servants have done something that no one thought we could do, and like it or not, we have succeeded. We have done our job and we have continued to do it the right way and we continue to deliver for the people, the working class that has often been ignored,” the president said.
The Council Speaker said she was looking for a “solid and stable foundation” for New Yorkers to guide the budget and was pleased with the final result.
“We believed in the strength of this city and its resilient economy. We were clear about the challenges, but we were also clear that we have the resources to invest in New Yorkers and protect what they depend on,” the political leader said of the budget, which includes $1 billion more than the executive budget proposed by the Mayor in April and restores cuts that had been announced as more than $58 million in libraries.
Public Advocate Jumaane Williams was optimistic about the budget, and while he noted that capital investment in key initiatives such as housing and other vital programs had been secured, he criticized Mayor Adams for initially announcing cuts that created distress and alarm.
“Nowhere is this clearer than in our libraries and cultural institutions, and I am grateful that the final budget agreement restores crucial funding to these areas. At the same time, we must not let the relief of undoing the administration’s high-profile, unnecessary cuts to libraries obscure reality: There are still other unnecessary, less visible cuts in this budget, and these will have an impact far beyond the fiscal year,” said the politician. “Finally, it should be clear that announcing that services would be cut and then reversing course months later is not a sign of strong administrative management; It is playing politics with programs that people depend on. “We need to lead with fiscal and moral responsibility.”
Kim Sweet, executive director of the Advocates for Children of New York (AFC), applauded the fiscal year 2025 budget agreement, noting that although there was initially concern about the expiration of federal financial support that could affect schools to address current and long-standing needs, finally included restoring funding for key programs supported by city funds such as the Mental Health Continuum, communications and outreach to immigrant families, and community schools.
Mayor Adams tried to push through vital cuts, but the Council opposed it. Photo by Edwin Martinez.
“We appreciate that the budget agreement includes more than $600 million for critical educational initiatives currently supported by expiring federal funds, including 500 social workers and school psychologists, 100 community coordinators in shelters, more than 100 community schools, preschool and high school special education. 3-K, Learning to Work programs, restorative justice, bilingual supports, translation and interpretation services, dyslexia programming, student success centers and Summer Rising. Losing her would have been devastating,” the activist said.
“However, looking ahead, the City must invest the resources necessary to provide all preschool-aged children with disabilities with the education and services they need and are legally entitled to receive,” she added.
Other voices, however, criticized the budget presented, saying it did not adequately respond to the current challenges and needs faced by residents of the Big Apple, especially the working class and vulnerable communities.
“Despite the best efforts of the City Council President and the City Council to negotiate a budget that responds to the times that working families live in, the City’s budget is destined to be mediocre and uninspired,” said the senator. from Queens Jessica Ramos.
“Anyone who looks at the figures knows that there is a lot of money in the budget to finance education, parks, housing, sanitation and public safety,” added the Latina politician. “The budget should answer the questions lingering in the minds of householders about affordability and improving quality of life, but the discourse has been bogged down in the outdated dance of cuts and restoration. It is time for dance to evolve and establish a future vision for the renaissance our city deserves.”
Working Families Party co-chairs Ana Maria Archila and Jasmine Gripper lashed out at the Mayor for being so insistent on implementing cuts that would affect millions of New Yorkers, and highlighted the militant work of the City Council, who they credited with the final outcome.
“From day one, Mayor Adams has made life harder for working families by cutting essential services, from 3-K to libraries to affordable housing, and today’s budget agreement is a testament to the Council’s determination to fight on behalf of working families and protect them from the harmful decisions of this administration,” the New York leaders said.
City Comptroller Brad Lander also expressed concerns and was not convinced by the adopted budget, although he praised the fact that many educational programs that were at risk of being eliminated will continue next year.
Critics claim that the budget does not address the needs of vulnerable groups. Photo Edwin Martinez.
“While the administration made modest progress in funding chronically underbudgeted issues and maintaining stimulus-funded programs, the financial plan continues the long tradition of underfunding known expenses, understating fiscal gaps, and clouding the nation’s financial picture. City,” Lander said. “Shortsighted cuts and selective restorations, without considering longer-term savings and efficiencies, do not provide the sound fiscal framework necessary to allow this city and its residents to prosper.”