Mayor Eric Adams calls on NYC agencies to make budget cuts across the board
NEW YORK -- A tough economy has forced many people to tighten their belts, and New York City is now doing the same.
Mayor Eric Adams is asking city agencies to cut their budgets for at least the next two years and plan for stricter budgets in the years ahead.
"Keep in mind, we have a potential $10 billion budget deficit," Adams said Monday.
With that budget gap in the billions, the mayor is asking city agencies to cut back. He's giving them a tight deadline of two weeks to find ways to save or obtain new grants -- without laying off workers or reducing services.
In a letter, his budget director said agencies are, "expected to reduce their city-funded expenses by 3.0% in Fiscal Year 2023, and 4.75% in Fiscal Year 2024."
"You know, it's easy to sit in the Council and just say, 'Let's just spend, spend spend.' No, I must make smart financial decisions so our city can weather these turbulent times right now," said Adams.
This comes as many financial experts have been fearing a recession is looming.
The mayor says the reasons include a declining Wall Street and tax revenues, rising health and energy costs, and the need to shelter thousands of asylum seekers.
But the leader of District Council 37, which is the city's largest public employee union, is calling on the city to stop the cuts before meeting with the union, saying in a statement it's, "the ultimate insult to our members, who have worked tirelessly since the pandemic began and gone without a raise for the last 16 months."
Adams says he's trying to do this without raising taxes, which of course would make living in New York City even more expensive.
