$101 billion budget outlines the new Council’s vision to invest in communities, schools, and youth, securing record funding for key programs while increasing Council’s budgetary powers

City Hall, NY – Speaker Adrienne E. Adams, Finance Committee Chair Justin Brannan and Members of the New York City Council today voted to adopt the Fiscal Year (FY) 2023 budget. This first budget under Speaker Adams and a new Council class reflects the Council’s commitment and vision to increase its budgetary power to hold agencies accountable, while securing a Council record of funding priorities during city budget negotiations to invest in communities for key programs and services.

The adopted FY 2023 budget includes many of the Council priorities to invest in communities to make New Yorkers safer. These include expansions of key youth programs, increased city funding for schools, expansion of housing access programs, a property tax rebate for working and middle class homeowners, funding for parks and sanitation services, and investments in community safety programs. This includes the creation of a new Speaker’s initiative, the Community Safety and Victim Services Initiative. These priorities were outlined in the Council’s Fiscal Year 2023 Preliminary Budget Response.

The Council also ensured fiscal responsibility by curbing the growth of wasteful criminal justice system spending. It largely held the New York Police Department (NYPD) budget flat compared to the FY 2022 adopted budget by finding savings of $65 million from the executive budget ($5.59B) to the adopted budget ($5.53B). The minimal year-over-year increased expenditure was driven by non-discretionary commitments from existing labor agreements. The Council also eliminated the Executive Budget’s proposal to increase the Department of Correction (DOC) headcount by 578 positions at a time when agency staff are chronically absent and conditions have worsened at Rikers Island, with a federal judge threatening to place it in receivership.

The Council secured 18 new units of appropriation (U/As) in its negotiation, historic for the Council in budget negotiations. It negotiated the creation of new U/As for the NYPD for the first time in Council history, establishing six new units (a nearly 50% increase to 20 U/As) that will provide the ability to ensure better transparency and accountability for the NYPD budget. It also doubled the number of U/As for DOC, from four to eight. The establishment of new U/As represents the Council expanding the use of its budgetary powers in a new way that facilitates better control and oversight of agency spending. The budget agreement also includes 60 terms and conditions, a record-breaking number for city budgets, that will require transparency and oversight into public safety, education, human services, and more.

“This Council secured historic reforms, bringing greater transparency to ensure communities are being met with the services they deserve,” said Speaker Adrienne Adams. “By stepping into our budgetary powers to hold agencies accountable and strengthening oversight, we will uplift the priorities of New Yorkers and advance an equitable recovery for all. We will continue our work as a Council to ensure this budget realizes our shared vision of a safer, healthier, and stronger city. I thank Chair Brannan, our Budget Negotiating Team, and all Council Members who engaged in this process, as well as Mayor Adams and his administration for their partnership.”

“This budget is a down payment on New York City’s comeback – not the way it was, but the way it should be,” said Council Member Justin Brannan, Chair of the Council’s Finance Committee. “From day one, we said our recovery would require real and meaningful investments in every community. We knew we couldn’t cut our way to prosperity, so we doubled down on what matters. We are a city of communities and, now more than ever, hardworking New Yorkers from Soundview to SoHo, from Dyckman Street to Dyker Heights wanna know their elected officials are working overtime to make their lives better. The City Council heard this clarion call and fought hard to deliver a prompt budget with both record investments and record reserves – a budget that puts money directly into our communities and back into the pockets of working families. I’m proud of my colleagues and the dedicated finance team who spent countless hours, late nights, and weekends working behind the scenes on this council’s first budget. I thank Speaker Adams for fostering an incredibly transparent and collaborative negotiation process and Mayor Adams and his team for recognizing our shared priorities of a stronger, safer, fairer, and more prosperous city for all.”

The FY 2023 adopted budget includes:

INCREASING BUDGET ACCOUNTABILITY & TRANSPARENCY

Units of Appropriations:

The FY 2023 adopted budget includes 18 new Units of Appropriation (U/A) that have been prioritized by the Council, a historic amount to be added as part of budget negotiations. Highlights include:

  • First-ever NYPD U/As added by Council, with an unprecedented six (6) additions – a nearly 50% increase that brings the total NYPD U/As to 20; they include PS and OTPS U/As for Patrol, Communications, and Intelligence and Counterterrorism.
  • Four (4) in DOC – Including jail operations, and health and mental health programming. 
  • Four (4) in HRA (Human Resources Administration) – A long standing priority of the Council, relating to reporting on Fair Fares and Domestic Violence Services.
  • One (1) in Department of Youth and Community Development (DYCD) – Runaway and Homeless Youth
  • One (1) in Department of Buildings (DOB) – Enforcement and inspection.
  • One (1) in Department of Education (DOE) – Student transportation.
  • One (1) in Administration for Children’s Services (ACS) – Committee on Special Education placements.

Terms and Conditions

Highlights include:

  • NYPD Overtime Reporting
  • DOC Reporting on Sick Leave and Unstaffed Posts
  • Cultural Grant Reporting
  • Detailing of Department of Sanitation (DSNY) litter basket pick-ups, school organics, and public waste containers
  • Information on City Doula Services
  • DYCD Runaway/Homeless Youth and Saturday Night Lights Utilization Data

PRIORITIZING HEALTH, SAFETY & HUMAN SERVICES

  • $60 million for Cost-of-Living-Adjustments for Human Service Providers to increase salaries for human service workers
  • $55.3 million to expand B-HEARD
  • $30 million for the New Family Home Visits Program
  • $19.3 million to increase mental health support and outreach for unhoused individuals:
  • $5 million for Mental Health Continuum to help students with significant mental health challenges access direct mental health services in school and connect students to other services throughout the City
  • $5 million for community-based hate crimes prevention and response programs
  • $3 million for Maternal Medical Home and Obstetric Simulation
  • $1.4 million toward pilot program providing free optometry Eye Care Pilot Program services to low-income New Yorkers.
  • Community Safety and Victim Services Initiative: A new Speaker’s discretionary funding initiative that provides each Council Member with $100,000 to invest in holistic safety by supporting local community safety programs. The funding recipients will be chosen by the local Council Member, and can be distributed to youth, housing support, health, mental health or other local programs that strengthen communities, or victim service providers.

INVESTING IN EDUCATION AND YOUTH

  • $700+ million increase in the commitment of city funds spent on our public schools, as federal stimulus funding for our schools declined significantly.
  • $277 million for the Summer Rising Program to provide free academic enrichment to students.
  • $79.4 million baselined to expand the Summer Youth Employment Program to 100K slots:
  • $46 million  for contract enhancements for wage increases for Special Education Pre-K and Day Care Providers
  • $33.4 million to expand Career and Technical Education:
  • Expand Fair Futures program by $18.8 million for a total program budget of $30 million
  • $19.7 million to double the slots for Work Learn Grow to 4,400 jobs: $19.7 million
  • $14 million for Community Schools Funding to restore and add funding to support new schools
  • $11.2 million to provide additional supports to English Language Learners
  • $10 million for childcare for undocumented families
  • $10 million to support the Education Equity Action Plan for the implementation of citywide kindergarten-to-high school Black studies curriculum
  • $9.2 million for the Low Income Childcare Voucher
  • $5.1 million for DOE Community Coordinators to support unhoused students
  • $4.4 million to establish the City University of New York (CUNY) Reconnect pilot program to help working-age adults attain a degree that expands earning potential – at all CUNY campuses, serving 10,000 students in its first year
  • $2.5 million to create New York State’s first two trauma recovery centers to support underserved victims of crime
  • $2 million for CUNY Remediation
  • $1 million for CUNY STEM to support programming at campuses citywide

ADDRESSING HOMELESSNESS & INCREASING ACCESS TO HOUSING AFFORDABILITY

  • $237 million to expand City FHEPS to fully fund and increase the rental voucher rate to match Section 8 levels
  • $171.3 million to expand funding for Drop-in Centers, Safe Haven Beds, and Stabilization Beds
  • $90 million to protect working and middle-class homeowners with a property tax rebate
    • City Rebate in combination with State Rebate will provide at least $440 per homeowner
    • For the first time ever, the City’s rebate will go to people who are behind in bills
    • The Council also adopted tax rates that minimizes impacts on homeowners
  • $65.8 million to provide prevailing wage for shelter security
  • $33.8 million for HIV/AIDS Services Administration (HASA) Single-Room Occupancy  to meet the needs and privacy for HASA recipients.
  • $19.2 million for additional staff and services at Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD)
  • $5.8 million for client service staffing and systems upgrades for benefits and housing assistance
  • $452K to restore the Source of Income Unit staff and funding at CCHR
  • $569,905 to expand the Office of the Tenant Advocate

ACCESS TO BENEFIT PROGRAMS & SERVICES TO SUPPORT COMMUNITIES

  • Fair Fares program to assist low-income New Yorkers with public transit costs: $75 million baselined
  • Infrastructure and support funding for the City’s three public library systems: $67 million
  • Emergency Assistance Grants: $40 million
  • Support for Cultural Organizations: $40 million
  • Emergency Food Assistance Program: $30 million for a total program budget of $52 million
  • Seamless Meal Transition for Older Adults Using GetFood Recovery Meals: $15 million
  • Language Access Expansion: $8.6 million
  • Adult Literacy Program Enhancement: $6.7 million
  • Immigrant Family Engagement: $4 million
  • Low Wage Worker Initiative: $2 million
  • Workforce Development Centers: $1.7 million

MAKING NEW YORK GREENER & CLEANER

  • $44.1 million for Parks Department Maintenance and Summer Workforce
  • $22 million to support citywide 6-days/week, twice daily litter basket service pickup
  • $9.2 million to enhance the School Organics Collection Program
  • Restore Sanitation Funding
    • Precision Cleaning: $7.46 million
    • Lot Cleaning: $4.9 million
    • Rat Mitigation: $4.8 million.
    • Street Cleaning: $1.9 million
    • E-waste Collection Restoration: $1.4 million.
  • $4.1 million to support 50 Urban Park Rangers
  • $3.5 million for Organics Drop-Off Sites
  • $2.9 million for the Zero Waste Schools Educational Program & Stop’N’Swap Program
  • $2.6 million to support Green Thumb Gardens
  • $2.5 million for Forest Management
  • $2.4 million to enhance the Office of Building Energy and Emissions
  • $2.25 million to keep school playgrounds open during non-school hours citywide
  • $2 million for Tree Stump Removal
  • $1.28 million for a Public Waste Container Pilot

ADDRESSING AGENCY OPERATIONS & GOVERNMENT EFFICIENCY

  • $1.6 million to enhance Department of Investigation (DOI) Staff to combat corruption
  • $75,000 for Small Business Residence Fund grant program for Minority- and Women-Owned Business Enterprises (MWBEs) to find relief, assist them in competing against others in their industry and to encourage hiring from surrounding communities
  • In order to support New Yorkers in any future emergencies and major economic downturn, the Council added $750 million to the Rainy Day Fund, bringing to a grand total of $1.95 billion.
  • General Reserves: Added $500 million in FY 2023 for a total of $1.6 billion and $200 million in FY 2024 – 2026 for a total of $1.2 billion in each year to protect against drastic cuts.

“Creating and protecting affordable housing opportunities has always been a top priority for this Council and this budget addresses just that,” said Deputy Speaker Diana Ayala. “From expanding CityFHEPS to funding for drop-in centers, safe haven beds, and stabilization beds, I’m proud of this budget that will help New Yorkers provide them with key services that are critical to addressing homelessness and affordable housing. I especially want to thank the Speaker and my Council colleagues, for coming together to adopt a budget that serves all New Yorkers.”

“I’m very proud to join Mayor Adams, Speaker Adams, Chair Brannan, and my colleagues to announce a historic FY23 budget for New York City,” said Majority Leader Keith Powers. “After two tremendously difficult years, this budget puts our city on the path to recovery, while prioritizing essential quality of life issues and uplifting our most vulnerable residents. While this budget makes important investments across all 5 boroughs, the work never stops—and I’m committed to continuing to advocate for the needs of our city and local communities.”

“This budget signals New York’s reemergence from the dark days of the COVID-19 pandemic by fortifying our healthcare systems, revitalizing our small businesses, supporting our local CBOs and non-profits, and centering the priorities of all New Yorkers,” said Majority Whip Selvena N. Brooks-Powers. “I am especially proud this Council was able to deliver record funding towards safer streets, fully funding City FHEPS, and $90 million towards property tax relief for our small homeowners. These significant investments realign our commitment to recovery, and I congratulate Council Speaker Adrienne E. Adams for her tireless leadership, as well as Mayor Adams and my esteemed colleagues for their commitment to prioritizing the needs of New Yorkers.”

“I applaud Speaker Adrienne Adams and Mayor Eric Adams for the collaborative approach that got us a budget that will benefit New Yorkers across the city,” said Council Member Gale A. Brewer. “Despite the tough times we are facing, we’ve taken this unique opportunity to make investments that create generational change.  I’m proud to have been a member of the negotiation team that made this budget possible.”

“As Council Members, one of our greatest responsibilities is negotiating and approving a budget that speaks to needs of our communities,” stated Council Member Rafael Salamanca. “Working with Speaker Adams and my colleagues on the Council’s Budget Negotiation Team, the Council secured increased funding for the Department of Parks to maintain our world-class parks system, and Department of Sanitation to ensure more frequent trash pick-up and cleanings. Critical to the youth of New York City, particularly in the South Bronx, we also fought for the baselining of almost $80 million for the Summer Youth Employment Program, funding that will create over 100,000 employment slots for our youngest New Yorkers. Within the 17th Council District, I secured over $20 million in local funding that will facilitate everything from increased food pantry services, domestic violence programming, state-of-the-art school classrooms, 100% affordable housing and new playgrounds.”

“This budget makes historic investments on issues important to my constituents, such as increased funding for sanitation services,” said Council Member Erik Bottcher. “I want to thank Speaker Adams, Finance Chair Brannan, and the Council’s budget negotiating term for securing wins like restoring corner litter basket service to above pre-pandemic levels.”

“Today’s budget vote marks a historic shift for our city in a multitude of ways. I applaud Speaker Adams and her leadership team for listening to and advocating for the needs of the diverse communities represented by this new City Council,” said Council Member Carmen De La Rosa. “We advanced many of our community’s priorities in this budget and are proud to have fought for equity including; unprecedented transparency measures in the NYPD, a record number of Summer Youth Employment positions, increased funding for essential sanitation services, housing, and homeless assistance, and the inclusion and investment in immigrant New Yorkers.”

“The Council worked incredibly hard to come to a budget that prioritizes the needs of every New Yorker. We were able to add a historic $1.1 billion from the Mayor’s preliminary budget, and those dollars will be going to critical services,” says Council Member Eric Dinowitz. “In particular, a $4.4 million fund for the CUNY Reconnect pilot program will help working-age adults to complete their degrees and will serve 10,000 students in its first year. The Council is also prioritizing protecting marginalized communities through programs that secure access to benefits and services to support anyone who has experienced atrocious hate incidents. Expanding resources our city needs is an important milestone and we need to keep working hard to end hate crimes in our city and to secure resources that our local agencies and schools require.”

“As a new member of the New York City Council and the Budget Negotiating Team, I am proud of the work that was accomplished to complete the FY 23 budget,” said Council Member Amanda Farías. “Thanks to the leadership of our Speaker Adrienne Adams and the tireless work of the Council’s Finance Division we have delivered a budget that addresses the needs of our communities and the City’s economic recovery. This year’s budget delivers a number of major wins for some of the most difficult challenges facing our City. This is especially true with respect to housing with increased funding levels to rental assistance programs and property tax rebates for homeowners. The Council has restored cuts to both sanitation and parks in order to keep our communities and green spaces clean and maintained. We have funded 100,000 jobs for our youth through the SYEP program to help our kids see their potential by providing work opportunities. While there are many things to be celebrated in this budget, there is always more work to be done and additional funding that is needed. The budget we are passing today serves as a framework and I look forward to working with my colleagues in the Council, the Mayor, and our partners at the state and federal level to provide more for our communities in the coming months. We have a long way to go as we strive for a full recovery in all five boroughs and to get every New Yorker back to work in well paying and protective jobs. I will continue fighting for our workers, families, and communities to receive the investments they deserve.”

“Budget negotiations are always complicated, and often end with a tough compromise, but it is commendable just how much of the Council’s budget response was implemented,” said Council Member Ari Kagan. “I strongly support significant investments in public safety, sanitation, Earned Income Tax Credit, childcare, property tax rebates, and such a sizable rainy day fund. Especially appreciated is the additional funding allocated to all council members to fight the wave of gun violence that has been plaguing our communities. I applaud Speaker Adrienne Adams and the Mayor Eric Adams on this budget.”

“This is a budget of which we can be proud, one that balances public safety and public good, our youth and our seniors, and long-time residents with new immigrants,” said Council Member Linda Lee. “As Chair of the Committee on Mental Health, Disabilities, and Addictions, I’ve worked to ensure that this budget addresses the ongoing mental health crisis in this City through major investments in our behavioral health system. In particular, this budget funds $19.3 million for mental health support and outreach for homeless New Yorkers, $53.3 million to expand the B-HEARD program and provide behavioral health responses to mental health emergencies, $5 million for school-based mental health services, $3.4 million for geriatric mental health, and long-overdue pay parity for special education Pre-K and Day Care providers. While budgets are moral documents, they are also the product of long and hard negotiation, careful thought, and sometimes difficult tradeoffs. I want to thank Speaker Adams, Chair Brannan, Deputy Speaker Ayala, and all of their teams in leading us through this process and delivering a historic 90% of Council asks in this agreed upon budget. I look forward to working with my colleagues, Speaker Adams, and Mayor Adams to deliver on the promise this budget represents all New Yorkers.”

“The record budget passed by the council, Speaker Adrienne Adams, and Mayor Eric Adams is a deal our city can celebrate,” said Council Member Farah Louis. “This year’s budget is a reflection of the priorities of the people. It provides additional resources for childcare and public safety programs, invests in affordable housing, prioritizes clean streets and parks, and supports the community programs students in our district rely on most. The budget provides support to prospective homeowners, offering a starting point for people from all generations to establish permanent roots in their communities. I am excited to see the programs my colleagues and I championed – from public safety to health and mental health programming to childcare vouchers – all included in this package. These are critical first steps to rebuilding our communities and helping our neighbors and small businesses recover from the pandemic, and I hope to see the City flourish in the coming year with the resources we proudly helped secure.”

“The City Council prioritized an equitable recovery for all New Yorkers by funding fair wages for human service workers, small businesses, education, childcare, affordable housing and safer, cleaner streets and more for New York City,” said Council Member Julie Menin. “I thank Speaker Adams and my fellow Council Members for developing a budget that will help all New Yorkers recover from the pandemic and move our city forward.”

“The City budget we are passing today tackles so many issues that affect New Yorkers everyday lives,” said Council Memer Francisco Moya. “We have increased the litter basket collection to clean up our streets, invested in a massive CityFHEPS voucher increase to keep families in their homes, increased the number of SYEP slots to give opportunities for our youth, and locked in additional funds for Fair Fares to help working New Yorkers get where they need to go. I thank Speaker Adams for her leadership in fighting for her members’ priorities and Mayor Adams for working hand in hand with our body to accomplish our budgetary goals.”

“Even though this is my first budget as a Member of the City Council, I quickly learned there is no such thing as a perfect budget, and equity would not be achieved in a single budget,” said Council Member Mercedes Narcisse. “However, I am very proud to be part of the Budget Negotiation Team, and vote to pass my first city budget as a member of the Council. I’m sure all my colleagues have items they would have like to see included or more funding provided to some initiatives. We didn’t get it all, but we scored major victories and made big investments in our communities. We expanded access to crucial physical and mental health care programs, and by promoting community-based safety solutions we will help deter crime and violence and make our neighborhoods stronger and safer.”

“This budget focuses on equity in investments and services that are vital to ensuring all New Yorkers can benefit from the systems put in place to serve them,” said Council Member Kevin C. Riley. “While there is still a long way to go to completely resolving injustices that directly affect the quality of life and opportunities for New York City communities of color, our collaborative work in this Council has awarded record breaking growth in funding that supports some of our most vulnerable New Yorkers. Prioritizing $10 million in funding for affordable childcare services, investing $79 million into our youth for critical employment and developmental opportunities, as well as securing $90 million in property tax rebates for working and middle-class homeowners are just some of the monumental achievements in this budget. I will continue to remain dedicated to partnering to ensure the needs of all New Yorkers are taken care of.”

“The Coronavirus exposed the glaring inequities that exist within our city, and this budget creates a robust pathway to address the way we approach h3ealthcare, housing, public safety and nearly every other aspect of how City government interfaces with our lives,” said Council Member Lynn Schulman. “As a new Member of a historic Council, led by a majority female body, I am proud of a budget that prioritizes such vital issues as childcare, education, cleaner streets, youth programs, parks, tax relief for homeowners, and so many other initiatives. Thank you to Mayor Eric Adams, Speaker Adrienne Adams, and all my colleagues on the Council who helped make this possible. Together, we will make our City thrive as we recover from COVID-19.”

“The budget is taking a holistic approach to healing New York City. We’re holding agencies accountable and we’re delivering for communities seen and unseen,” said Council Member Marjorie Velázquez. “This budget makes historic investments in homeownership, childcare, and education. With huge funding increases to the Department of Sanitation and Parks Department, our neighborhoods will be able to breathe a little easier. When I took office I said that one of our top priorities coming out of COVID should be Mental Health. This budget delivers on that promise with historic funding of Mental Health programs that will help our City continue to heal. We knew this year’s budget was going to be a challenge but I am very proud of the work that my colleagues and I were able to deliver.  I want to thank Speaker Adrienne Adams, Mayor Eric Adams, and all the staff that made this possible.”

“The City budget is not just about numbers on paper—it tells who we are as a city. As Chair of the Civil and Human Rights Committee, I strongly advocated for the Source of Income Unit at CCHR to be funded and I am glad to see it in the budget. This year, we celebrate our many wins for the City and our districts, and I’m excited to be a part of this diverse body,” said Council Member Nantasha Williams. “As the first female elected in the 27th Council District, I’m deeply honored to be passing my first budget under the leadership of the first Black Woman Speaker, Adrienne Adams. This budget is a reflection of the Council’s commitment to ensuring that all New Yorkers have the opportunity to thrive.”

“As Contracts Committee chair, the $60 Million Cost of Living Adjustments for human service providers is an overdue victory for the nonprofits that kept our neighbors safe, fed, and housed during the pandemic, but also a move towards equity for the women and people of color who make up a majority of this workforce,” said Council Member Julie Won. “We need to make sure that the people who fight hardest to keep our seniors healthy, our communities strong, and our streets safe are paid the money they deserve. Similarly, the $20+ million for Adult Literacy and $8.6 million Language Access expansion are only a small glimpse of our efforts to take steps towards equity for our immigrant New Yorkers. Growing up, I translated school notices, health bills, and legal notices in our mailbox. If my parents had access to low-cost/free adult literacy classes, their life would have been different. Adult literacy— is for my mama who still reads every night to learn English. This budget in its entirety prioritizes funding a city that values the people and the workers who serve our city for a truly equitable recovery for all.”

“There is a lot to like with this year’s budget and some disappointments,” said Council Member Inna Vernikov. “Overall this is one of the better budgets since Mayor Bloomberg. My constituents in District 48 are treated right by this budget, Sanitation is fully funded, NYPD is back to its prior funding, there is a property tax rebate, and the Speaker added an extra 325,000 across five programs to Member-District funding. These are the things I campaigned on and this budget is a good start, but represents a new beginning toward a more workable city.”

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