Garcia has also acknowledged hiccups in the program, saying “the challenge was also just dealing with the scale of the crisis at the moment of the crisis and the huge need that just went flying through the roof, and keeping up with that and trying to make sure we had enough food, food that was religiously appropriate and being able to make that sync together,” she said in a recent appearance on What’s The [DATA] Point?, which is produced by Gotham Gazette and Citizens Budget Commission.

The NYC Citizens Budget Commission report confirms that the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) $51-billion 2020 - 2024 Capital Plan is no longer financially feasible. Why does MTA Chairman Pat Foye continue to refuse consideration for the following options to assist in solving the New York MTA's financial crises?

David Friedfel of the Citizens Budget Commission, a state budget watchdog, noted the immigration defense organizations are likely part of cuts related to what Cuomo has called a $14 billion shortfall.

“There’s an element of truth there that the federal government should do more,” Friedfel told THE CITY. “Whether or not it’s fair to blame them for this individual payment being delayed is really a different question.”

The Climate Act establishes a Climate Action Council at §75-0103 that will develop a scoping plan to implement the requirements of the law. The Citizens Budget Commission developed an overview of the CLCPA targets in Green in Perspective: 6 Facts to Help New Yorkers Understand the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act. The current emphasis is implementation of plans to meet the requirement to reduce GHG emissions from electricity production by 70% in 2030 and eliminate them altogether by 2040. In my opinion, the proponents of the Climate Act believe that meeting the aspirational goal of a carbon-free electric system by 2040 is simply a matter of political will. I am not nearly as optimistic because every time I look at any aspect of that transition I find unexpected complications, unintended consequences, and ever higher costs.

The state’s retirement benefits are well-funded, agreed David Friedfel, director of state studies for the independent Citizens Budget Commission. But he noted that health benefits for retirees aren’t fully funded and the state has a future liability of $65 billion, Friedfel said.

“During the state’s current financial problems, the state must maintain the positive standing of the retirement system and avoid any fiscal maneuvers or payment delays that could undermine the state retirement system’s finances,” Friedfel said.

The Citizens Budget Commission has also reported New York City residents are subject to the second-highest personal income tax in the country at nearly 12.7 percent. New York also imposes an 8.8 percent personal income tax statewide on married couples filing jointly with incomes greater than $2.2 million annually; only New Jersey and California impose higher wealth taxes, the CBC's report shows.

Enforcement of a mandatory organics policy will be required, and is best supplemented by technical assistance and the financial incentive of volume-based waste fees. The Citizen’s Budget Commission calculated that these could save New York City $57 million a year. Both policies have been applied in Seattle, where organic waste collection now costs less than trash.

New York cops often retire after twenty years of service, with pensions that, according to a 2018 analysis by the nonprofit Citizens Budget Commission, average $74,500, and with plenty of time to start a second career, typically in security. The union—with its hefty political budget, its ability to launch fierce media campaigns, and the fear it can inspire in every politician who does not want to be painted as soft on crime—has also delivered when it comes to public policy. In the sixties, the N.Y.P.D. dropped a longtime requirement that its officers live in the five boroughs, and the P.B.A. has fought off every suggestion that the requirement be revived. And so a majority of its white members live on Long Island or in other suburbs. Dinkins ultimately succeeded in installing a civilian complaint-review board, but its disciplinary recommendations to the department are rarely followed. In public, the union trashes its every step.

As a Citizens Budget Commission report notes, last month’s budget plan closed more than half of a multibillion-dollar shortfall by tapping reserves and federal aid — and only 44 percent via less spending. And much of the savings won’t recur, splashing $10 billion in red ink over the next three years. The CBC blasts de Blasio for that and for his “unrealistic projections.”

For months, New Yorkers and people all over the nation watched as Governor Andrew Cuomo provided daily data updates on the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on New York and explained how the data guided the state’s response to the pandemic and reopening the economy. The Governor likened the approach to carefully controlling valves based on gauges of progress (or to a more visually appealing 1967 Corvette dashboard). While the pandemic presented unique, monumental challenges, the use of timely, complete data to inform decisionmaking and adjust governmental operations is not a novel concept; it is exactly what we mean by performance measurement and management.

David Friedfel, director of state studies for the independent Citizens Budget Commission, also said new taxes may be unavoidable with the Cuomo administration forecasting a $61 billion state deficit over the next four years.

He said implementing any significant spending cuts this year to make up for a multi-billion dollar shortfall would be politically difficult with legislators facing re-election in November.

“They certainly can’t tax their way out of this, but it would also be tough to cut that amount in the middle of the year,” Friedfel said.

Friedfel said any new tax increase risks hurting New York’s competitiveness and suggested that the state freeze planned middle-class tax cuts scheduled to take effect in January as a temporary measure that could net around $400 million of revenue in fiscal 2022.

He also noted that temporarily suspending New York’s sales tax exemption on clothing items costing less than $110 would also generate around $774 million for 2021 and grow up to $2 billion by 2024.

Labor unions need to work with the de Blasio administration to find $1 billion in savings in the city's beleaguered budget, according to a report by the Citizens Budget Commission, and attrition of the government workforce should be where they start.

“Labor has contributed and been part of the solutions in all the prior recessions, and I think it’s the right expectation to have them contribute,” said Ana Champeny, the CBC director of city studies. “A billion dollars might seem like a lot, but it’s 2% of salaries, wages, benefits and overtime.

“If you put it in context it can be achieved.”

The group advocates attrition of up to 9,000 employees in the city’s 326,000-member municipal workforce, a process that would allow workers to retire and not be replaced in fiscal year 2021.

“I do think it’s a reasonable number,” CBC President Andrew Rein said. “You can use attrition, and through attrition and not layoffs still hire for key health and safety organizational priorities.”

The burden of the city payroll was only one of the problems the city faces, according to a commission analysis of the budget.

The CBC predicted budget gaps of up to $3 billion annually until 2024.

Unions need to meet the city halfway on health care, as they have in downturns and recessions, the CBC said.

“It’s the time to go back to that and think about how they can redefine these health insurance premium sharing arrangements,” CBC Vice President Maria Doulis said. “Pensions are not something that can be controlled or altered or negotiated by the mayor, but health insurance costs are, and those have been growing quickly.”