When budget watchdogs like the Citizens Budget Commission criticize New York’s economic development spending, they are frequently referring to the $10 billion the state spends annually bolstering private industry: think the Buffalo Billion, the Buffalo Bills stadium or the tax credits that go to the film and television industry.

In the 1990s, 13% of Lower Manhattan’s office buildings were converted to housing, adding about 13,000 units with the 421g incentive and an additional 17,000 units without it, according to an analysis by the Citizens Budget Commission.

DiNapoli’s overall sentiments echo those made by the Citizens Budget Commission last month. As Crain’s reported at the time, new analyses by the commission found that the city’s budget gap could grow as high as $10.7 billion by fiscal year 2027, fueled by waning federal pandemic aid and dwindling tax revenues.

"My budget hole gets bigger and bigger," Jiha said during a panel discussion hosted by the fiscal watchdog group, the Citizens Budget Commission.

peaking a forum held by the Citizens Budget Commission on Wednesday, Jacques Jiha, director of the OMB, said the city was trying to maintain a balance between spending and reductions.

While the board has lost much of its original power and would need to request permission from the state Legislature to crack open the city’s ledger, according to the Citizens Budget Commission, that hasn't stopped fiscal watchdogs from invoking its name, most recently when the city mused about borrowing money for operating expenses in 2020.

City officials have heard from the Federal Emergency Management Agency that no single municipality will be receiving more than 10 percent of the $360 million expected to be dished out by the end of the federal fiscal year this fall, according to Budget Director Jacques Jiha, who spoke Wednesday at a breakfast hosted by the Citizens Budget Commission.

"I'm counting on us educating them," he said at a breakfast hosted by the Citizens Budget Commission.

Office market values are projected to drop by 10 percent in fiscal year 2025, and by an additional 2 percent in the subsequent two years, Budget Director Jacques Jiha said at a Citizens Budget Commission event Wednesday. He noted the property tax roll for the upcoming fiscal year is based on calendar year 2021 income and expense data from the properties.

The mayor’s budget director, Jacques Jiha, accentuated the tensions at a Citizens Budget Commission event Wednesday while speaking about the challenges of reaching a deal.

So therefore, we assumed we’ll be getting $600 million from the federal government,” the Office of Management and Budget Director Jacques Jiha admitted during a panel discussion held Wednesday and hosted by the fiscal watchdog group, the Citizens Budget Commission.

“My bet is that we are at least gearing up to have a budget after the primary,” Jiha said during a question-and-answer session with Citizens Budget Commission President Andrew Rein at Club 101 in Midtown Manhattan Wednesday morning.