Mayor Zohran Mamdani is turning the page on a plan that would have cut funding to New York City libraries.
Under the executive budget unveiled on Tuesday, Mamdani will add an additional $31.7 million in funding to the three library systems — Queens, Brooklyn and New York — as requested by the City Council. Library funding accounts for less than $500 million, or less than .5%, of the city’s overall $124.5 billion budget.
The mayor’s initial proposal in February to slash library funding amid a $5.4 billion budget deficit surprised many of his supporters. During the campaign, Mamdani praised libraries as important city resources and cultural hubs. In 2023, Mamdani joined the criticism of then-Mayor Eric Adams for cutting library funding, which forced branches to close on Sundays.
“If you’re just going to say, ‘Oh, I love the library,’ but you’re not actually supporting them, then that’s a real disappointment and, frankly, bulls—,” said Abby Emerson, a member of the NYC Public Library Action Network, or NYC PLAN, when the cuts were announced.
Adams also sought to fan flames over the budget cuts. “WHERE IS THE ‘SAVE THE LIBRARIES’ GANG?!” the former mayor wrote on X.
In response to the criticism, the mayor’s office stressed that the proposed cuts were part of a preliminary budget that would be revised at later stages of the budget negotiation process.
But library supporters wasted no time mobilizing against the cuts. NYC PLAN, which is made up of library patrons and staff members, held a rally for libraries in March. They also launched an online campaign describing the mayor’s preliminary budget as “terrible” for the city’s libraries.