Caption Jenifer and Eddie

 

Mayor Adams virgin budget cuts

NY Daily News

Mayor Adams rolled out a $98.5 billion municipal government budget blueprint Wednesday that he touted as an antidote to “decades of inefficiency” that would root out wasteful spending and boost public safety without increasing funding for the NYPD.

The 2023 fiscal year preliminary budget, which marks the first salvo in a monthslong negotiation process with the City Council, is about $200 million smaller than former Mayor Bill de Blasio’s 2022 budget. Adams credits the decrease to the 3% spending cut he ordered at nearly all municipal agencies last month.

“My administration is laser-focused on fiscal discipline,” Adams said at City Hall while unveiling the preliminary budget, his first since taking office. “We are not spending our money. We are spending your money.”

Thanks to the 3% shave, known as a “Program to Eliminate the Gap” or PEG, Adams’ budget expects to reduce municipal government spending by nearly $2 billion and head count by 10,200 over the 2022 and 2023 fiscal years without any layoffs.

Among the agencies ordered to trim the fat is the NYPD, which Adams said he does not envision getting a larger pot of cash for as part of his 2023 budget.

In fact, Adams said the NYPD will see a “slight decrease” in spending as he works to phase out redundant administrative positions in the department and put more cops on patrol.

But the mayor stressed the NYPD budget stabilization will not take away from his mission to crack down on the city’s recent spike in violent crime — and did not rule out hiring more officers.

“No matter what we do, I’m going to make sure we have the right number of officers to keep our city safe,” he told reporters in a news conference following his speech.

He added, “That’s the No. 1 concern right now — public safety.”

 The Health Department was exempt from Adams’ 3% reduction directive due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but would nonetheless get a $194 million cut, while Health + Hospitals, the city’s public hospital system, would have its budget sliced by more than $400 million.

The Department of Housing Preservation and Development would also get a nearly $1 million reduction in funding, angering affordable housing advocates who accused Adams of breaking a campaign promise.

“We are extremely disappointed that Mayor Eric Adams did not even mention housing in his remarks nor prioritize it in his budget plans, instead choosing to maintain the status quo and abandon his campaign promise to double city capital spending on affordable housing and NYCHA,” said Rachel Fee, executive director of the New York Housing Conference.

“In the process, he sent a loud and clear signal to his struggling constituents: ‘Despite what I said on the campaign trail, don’t expect bold action on housing.’ ”

 That's good, siphon money from the health dept. and housing, that won't simultaneously exacerbate the city's perpetual mental health and homeless crises