Immigrant advocacy group Make the Road New York (MRNY) on Tuesday, May 12, welcomed Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s proposed $124.7 billion Fiscal Year (FY) 2027 executive budget.
“After years of fiscal mismanagement and program cuts that struck at the livelihood of struggling New Yorkers, we are grateful to have a partner in Mayor Mamdani who is committed to delivering for immigrants and working-class communities of color,” said MRNY director of campaigns Jennifer Hernandez.
“Thanks to the relentless efforts of our movement and allies, we were able to secure funding and revenue to pay for vital city services and close a gaping budget gap,” she added, noting that the proposal includes taxing second homes for the ultra-rich. “And we will not stop until we build a New York where everyone can prosper.
“We all deserve a well-funded education, to live in real safety, a roof over our heads, and food on the table,” Hernandez continued. “Today’s budget proposal includes increased funding for several essential programs, including childcare, so that working families can afford to stay in the city and providers can earn dignified wages; for the prevention of hate violence that disproportionately impacts TGNCIQ New Yorkers; and for legal services to prevent the exploitation of workers.”
But Hernandez said while many New Yorkers are increasingly experiencing homelessness and exorbitantly unaffordable rents, “we are disappointed that the proposed budget does not include any expansion of the CityFheps program, a lifeline that will allow the New Yorkers with the most need to have a place to sleep at night.
“As the mayor’s office and City Council continue budget negotiations, we will push for future investments and expansions in the program,” she vowed.
Mamdani said on May 12 that he has balanced the budget through a combination of “aggressive savings, new tax revenue, partnership with Albany, and critical new investments in the needs of working class New Yorkers.”
Mamdani added: “For too long, working New Yorkers have been told that austerity was the answer to adversity. This budget rejects that failed politics. We are restoring fiscal stability without slashing the services people depend on, without raising property taxes and without asking working families to pay for a crisis they did not create.
The mayor claimed he inherited budget gaps larger than those seen during the Great Recession.
“Both the city and state comptrollers agreed the prior administration had substantially underbudgeted core city services and obligations, increasing budget gaps to more than $12 billion,” he said.
As part of his administration’s efforts to restore fiscal transparency and public excellence to city government, the mayor said he ordered every agency to appoint a chief savings officer.
Through this effort, the mayor said his administration achieved $1.77 billion in gap-closing savings across Fiscal Years 2026 and 2027.
Mamdani said he identified an additional $1.2 billion in savings by addressing systemic inefficiencies in critical programs, including improving access for special education students, reaching class size compliance and strengthening CityFHEPS.
He said the city will also create a more predictable debt payment schedule, resulting in $1.64 billion in savings in Fiscal Year 2027 alone without impacting retirees, their benefits, or current and future employee benefits.
Thanks to Gov. Kathy Hochul, Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins and Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, Mamdani said the city secured an additional $4 billion in state support and actions to help stabilize the budget.
He said that includes $352 million in direct aid, $3.2 billion in state authorizations — including pension liability restructuring and class size flexibility mentioned above — and $500 million in new revenue through a pied-à-terre tax on second homes valued above $5 million.
In addition to the pied-à-terre-tax, the mayor said he will work with Speaker Julie Menin and the City Council on their proposal to reduce the UBT tax credit, which, he said, “overwhelmingly benefits millionaires.”
Mamdani said reducing the UBT tax credit will raise an additional $68 million.
He said he also made critical investments to reduce the cost of living, strengthen public services, improve public safety, expand worker protections and support the health and well-being of New Yorkers across all five boroughs.
“From day one, I have been committed to ensuring New York City succeeds, because a strong and stable City means an even stronger New York State,” said Gov. Kathy Hochul on Tuesday. “Today, we are fulfilling the promise to make free universal child care a reality, making significant investments in education, public safety, and infrastructure while providing the city the resources they need to continue to fund critical services for New Yorkers.
In a joint statement, New York City Council Speaker Julie Menin and Council Member Linda Lee, chair of the Committee on Finance, said they had “a productive meeting” with Mayor Mamdani on the executive budget, and that they “appreciate that the administration has moved toward an approach championed by the Council that identifies savings and avoids raising property taxes or raiding reserves.”
“While we await a final state budget, we are pleased with Gov. Hochul and the state Legislature’s commitment to providing the city with billions in additional funds and savings,” they said.
Menin and Lee said the City Council will closely review the Executive Budget and hold oversight hearings over the coming weeks, “as we work to deliver for hardworking families.
“We have important work ahead to advance key priorities including affordability, public transit access, and investments in the services New Yorkers rely on every day,” they said.
