Wednesday, April 1, marked the 91st day of Zohran Mamdani’s term as mayor. amNewYork is following Mamdani around his first 100 days in office. We are closely tracking his progress on fulfilling campaign promises, appointing key leaders to government posts, and managing the city’s finances. Here’s a summary of what the mayor did yesterday and today.
Mayor Zohran Mamdani gave a fiery response Wednesday to the City Council’s response to his preliminary budget, charging that their plan is unrealistic and ineffective in addressing the large financial deficit.
Hizzoner said City Council Speaker Julie Menin’s budget strategy “effectively ensures this structural deficit will continue indefinitely” — something similar to what critics have said about Mamdani’s own preliminary spending plan, which is largely based on the mayor convincing Albany lawmakers to raise taxes for the ultra-wealthy. If that fails, the mayor would seek property tax increases that Menin has already deemed a non-starter.
Yet on April 1, the mayor suggested that his City Council counterpart’s budget would be too draconian, impacting vital city services — and, in the end, would not solve the city’s deep financial problems.
“Speaker Julie Menin’s preliminary budget proposal would result in slashing billions of dollars from agency budgets, which would force the City to cut services,” Mamdani said. “Double-counting previously identified savings, overestimating revenues, and exaggerating debt service savings does nothing to close a deficit.”
The Council and City Hall publicly agreed on basic economic goals for the city: affordability for working-class New Yorkers, an end to chronic under-budgeting, and maintaining city services. But their proposed paths forward diverged significantly.
Simmering tensions over the budget crisis seemed to finally boil over on Wednesday, pitting one against the other, and leaving the city’s economic stability hanging in the balance.
The two plans can be boiled down to the argument of savings vs. revenue. The Council’s plan proposes closing a $5.9 billion budget gap primarily by finding savings within the city’s current coffers, while Mamdani’s plan focuses on generating revenue through new taxes and a large withdrawal from the city’s rainy day fund.
The differences in strategy led to harsh criticism from both City Hall and the City Council.
Mamdani characterized the Council’s approach as “pennypinching,” while Speaker Menin emphasized that the mayor’s plan may very well fall on working-class homeowners in NYC to cover the budgetary gap.
“We cannot in good conscience fund the City’s needs on the backs of homeowners or renters, by digging into emergency reserves, or by cutting essential programs,” Menin said in a statement. “Our response offers a clear alternative to taking those steps, puts the City back on stable footing and invests directly in New Yorkers.”
Both plans seem to be on uncertain ground given the still unknowns about the budget out of Albany, upheaval at the federal level, Hochul’s position on taxing the wealthy and the ongoing crisis over staffing shortages at city agencies.
Council Member Jennifer Gutiérrez appeared with Mayor Mamdani at a childcare announcement after disagreeing with his determination of the council budget reply Photo by Lloyd Mitchell
Others have also weighed in on the debate. Council Member Kevin C. Riley, who joined the Bronx Democratic Party in endorsing Mamdani during the Mayoral race responded to the Mayor’s comments on X.
“This is deeply misleading and potentially harmful!” Riley said on social media. “I thought these four years were going to be different.”
Leaders from independent organizations, like the anti-austerity collective, The People’s Plan NYC, acknowledged the need for greater savings and efficiencies, but called for a united voice towards Albany.
“With the State budget delayed and no commitment from the Governor, City leaders must be aligned and clear: New York City needs new, recurring state revenue from taxing corporations and the ultra-wealthy,” said Executive Director of the People’s Plan NYC Zara Nasir. “The Council should have stated this need more directly in its central budget publication.”
Mamdani reminded reporters on Wednesday at a Q&A that the huge budget shortfall is an inherited crisis.
“This is a deficit not driven by new spending by our administration,” He said. “It is a deficit that is driven by financial mismanagement and chronic under-budgeting for long-standing expenses that the city has often chosen to push off its public-facing budgets.”
Now, the council and City Hall have until June 1 to reach an agreement on how best to navigate the city’s financial crisis.
Childcare: Mayor maps out facilities
Photo by Lloyd Mitchell
Mamdani has launched a “first-of-its-kind” city child care website and interactive map, offering a new tool for families to find and compare providers across the five boroughs.
Mamdani launched the new site and map at the New York Hall of Science in Corona on Wednesday afternoon, stating that the new tool will help parents identify the right care for their children.
“For too long, finding child care has meant hours of searching, cross-checking lists and relying on word of mouth,” Mamdani said. “In New York City, finding care for your child shouldn’t feel like a second job.
“This tool is about making government work for people — simple, clear and accessible.”
Mamdani said the interactive map has been developed with input from parents at every stage, adding that the platform brings together information on child care providers across the five boroughs in one location.
Lisa Gelobter, chief technology officer for the City of New York and commissioner of the Office of Technology and Innovation, said the new map lets parents enter their zip code to view all nearby providers, and filter them by age and price.
She said the map provides parents with an “invaluable resource” for finding a child care provider that meets their needs. She further described the map as a “game-changer” because it allows parents to find their optimal provider without sifting through dozens of websites.
The new website, meanwhile, is available in multiple languages and provides “plain-language guides” to child care in the city, City Hall said.
Parents can fill out a questionnaire to find a provider that best meets their needs, schedules, and preferences, while they can also receive live support or guidance through a partnership with Child Care Resource Centers.
Kellan Calder, parent and community organizer for New Yorkers United for Child Care, said the launch of the new map and website ensures that the era of parents scouring social media groups for information “comes to an end.”
“This website will let parents understand New York’s child care options at a glance, making it easier for families to find the free and affordable care they deserve,” Calder said.
Council Member Jennifer Gutiérrez, who represents the 34th Council District in Brooklyn, said the new site and map make child care much more accessible for parents.
“As a mom of two, I can’t tell you how important something as simple as one place to visit to look at all the options in my neighborhood are,” she said at NYSCI. “I went on a search on Google, Reddit, friends, friends of friends, church friends. And it was really hard.”
Council Member Shanel Thomas-Henry, who represents NYSCI in the 21st District, made an impromptu appearance at Wednesday’s launch and credited Mamdani for being “innovative” by providing parents with a tool to navigate a “complex system.”
“Luckily for me, I was able to put my kids in the daycare centers that I went to,” Thomas-Henry said. “But for so many parents who are new to the area or who may not have gone to providers that are still open today, it’s a very difficult task to find responsible childcare that you know and trust to take care of your most valuable possession.”
Mamdani said the new tools can also help address the problem of empty child care seats across the city by providing parents with access to information about suitable providers they may not have heard about.
“This is now a site where you can find the health inspection of all of these providers,” Mamdani said. “You can find home-based providers, school-based providers, center-based providers, and you also have the confidence of knowing that this is a regularly updated, comprehensive set of information.
“I think that this will also make it easier for parents to understand the options in front of them.”
With reporting by Adam Daly