May 12, 2026
New York, NY – New York City Comptroller Mark Levine issued the following statement on the Fiscal Year 2027 Executive Budget proposed today by Mayor Mamdani.
“I commend Mayor Mamdani for putting forward an Executive Budget proposal that is significantly improved over the February plan. Most notably, it replaces a broad and inequitable property tax increase with a targeted pied-à-terre surcharge, and avoids raiding the City’s rainy-day reserves.
“This budget has improved in no small part because of additional assistance from the State, and I am grateful to Governor Hochul, Senate Majority Leader Stewart-Cousins, Assembly Speaker Heastie, and members of the Senate and Assembly for delivering that support. I look forward to reviewing the full extent of the provisions of the enacted State budget.
“Still, the Executive Budget relies on $2.8 billion in one-time measures and $2.3 billion in short-term pension savings, without solving for the fact that City government continues to spend more than we take in, even in a year of record revenues. The budget also relies on the implementation of strategies to lower the cost of rental assistance and special education, which will require close and transparent monitoring. Taken together, these actions delay addressing the deeper structural imbalances in the City’s budget, as is clear from out-year gaps of $7.1 billion in FY 2028 growing to $9.8 billion in FY 2030.
“Between now and June 30th, it is important that we strengthen this budget further by reducing reliance on one-time actions and adding to reserves to ensure the City is prepared against potential fiscal shocks. That is what I’ll be fighting for in the weeks ahead.”
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