Mayor, City Council Reach Record $101B NYC Budget Deal

NEW YORK CITY — A record-breaking $101 billion budget deal for New York City bursts at the seams with funds for services across the city, but also socks away billions for a rainy day.

Mayor Eric Adams and City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams jointly announced Friday that they reached an “early handshake” on the 2023 budget.

Flanked by Council members and city staffs, the dual Adamses heaped praise upon each other and officials who crafted the truly whopping budget, which provides $4 billion to childcare funding, a $250 million expansion of the city’s Earned Income Tax Credit and $223 million to subway safety outreach programs, according to the mayor’s office.

Adams, the mayor, said the budget reflected collaboration between ideological foes and a familiar mantra from his six months in office.

“I believe that we have to get stuff done,” he said.

“There’s so much we agree on, and we’re willing to say we’re going to debate all those things we disagree on, but why not start from a position of the things that we agree on?” he said.

Adams, the council’s speaker, praised her mayoral counterpart for agreeing to 90 percent of what Council members had requested — which tallied to $1.15 billion in added investments.

Those included funds for cultural institutions, libraries, human services, parks and more, she said. Another deal would bring the value of city FHEPs vouchers up to match Section 8 levels, she said.

“Which we know is an effective way to help thousands of New Yorkers seeking a stable roof over their heads,” she said.

A bipartisan agreement between Council Democrats and Republican secured $90 million toward a property tax rebate for small homeowners, officials said.

Council Member Justin Brannan, who helped craft the budget deal, said it would leave no one behind in the city, from seniors to students.

“This budget is really a down payment on the comeback of New York City,” he said. “Like the mayor said, not the way it was, but the way it should be.”

The record budget deal appeared to contradict the mayor’s previously stated desire to cut spending. But officials noted it set aside $8.3 billion in reserves, which is a record in itself.