CBC President Andrew Rein issued this statement on the New York City Adopted Budget on behalf of CBC:

"The Fiscal Year 2020 Adopted Budget agreement Mayor Bill de Blasio and City Council Speaker Corey Johnson announced today increases City spending, savings, and reserves; unfortunately, new spending commitments are greater than deposits to the City’s reserves.

The budget agreement includes $329 million in new savings plus recognition of additional revenues. The most prudent course of action would have been to place the vast majority of these new resources in reserve; however, most of the funds were dedicated to service expansion and new spending initiatives. Some of the new Council spending priorities were supported appropriately with $45 million in creditworthy savings from headcount and Thrive NYC reductions.

The agreement increases the City's general reserve by $150 million and the Retiree Health Benefits Trust (RHBT) by $100 million. These actions are prudent; in particular City leaders deserve praise for making deposits to the RHBT annually since 2014. However, the Mayor and Council Speaker should have gone further to bolster the City’s fiscal standing while the economy continues to thrive in order to protect New Yorkers when the rainy day arrives."