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Blog
City Budget
The Beginning of the End of Balanced Budgets for New York City?
June 23, 2010
What ought to be considered a dramatic reversal of a highly praised policy has been buried in an arcane legal change made by the Legislature at the request of the Mayor, allowing the city to borrow for pollution remediation.
Blog
Education
Improving the Poorly Targeted Proposed School Aid Increase
March 20, 2012
Reviews and recommends changes to the school aid proposal made in the NYS Executive Budget for FY2013.
Blog
State Budget
Pass Governor’s Proposal to Reform State Retiree Health Insurance Benefits
March 13, 2016
State of New York retirees with more than 10 years of service receive health insurance benefits substantially more generous than those offered by private sector and most public sector employers. Governor Andrew Cuomo’s Executive Budget for FY2017 includes a fair proposal to reduce these growing costs, and the Legislature should adopt it.
Blog
State Budget
Budget Proposals with a Big Long-Term Payoff
March 16, 2017
The NYS FY2018 Executive Budget includes three proposals to reduce the State’s cost of providing retiree health insurance. Budget savings would be modest, but the reduction in the OPEB liability would be significant.
Blog
Pensions & Benefits
2016 Benefit Sweetener Scorecard
May 02, 2016
The Citizens Budget Commission’s 2016 Benefit Sweetener Scorecard identifies more than 60 such bills active this session. These bills could cost the State and local governments hundreds of millions of dollars per year, and since about half the bills do not specify a fiscal impact, the potential costs could be significantly greater.
Blog
State Budget
The Challenge of Producing a $2 Billion Surplus
January 16, 2014
With school aid and Medicaid growing at annual rates at or above 4 percent, all other categories of spending, including agency operations, will face offsetting reductions to the plan if the net increase in overall state spending is to be kept to 2 percent.
Blog
City Budget
A PEG by Any Other Name Would Smell as Sweet
April 19, 2015
Mayor de Blasio voices heartfelt interest in finding ways to save money, but he does not want to call it a PEG or put such name in his plan, at least in part because of its identification with prior administrations.
Blog
City Budget
The “20-20-20-20” Dilemma: Legacy Costs in the New York City Budget
July 22, 2016
A giant slice of the New York City budget pays for costs that are the legacy of commitments made in the past: debt service, pensions, and retiree health insurance. These legacy costs already exceed 20 percent of the budget and will expand by 20 percent to more than $20 billion in annual spending by fiscal year 2020.
Op Ed
City Budget
Vote yes on a rainy day fund for New York City
New York Daily News
October 21, 2019
When New Yorkers head to the polls to vote, they will find five important ballot proposals, but one in particular is worth supporting because it would make an important change to how the city manages its budget.
Blog
Taxes
The Tax Hike’s Silver Lining
December 07, 2011
If the temporary personal income tax hike is the price we pay for long-term reforms that enhance infrastructure, encourage job growth, make the state and local tax system more equitable, and reduce future pension costs, then it is a price worth paying.
Blog
Taxes
Pied-à-Terre Tax
Appealing but Problematic
March 13, 2019
The pied-à-terre tax is appealing politically because it is levied on wealthy people with means to pay and nonresidents who do not vote. Nevertheless, it is problematic for several reasons.
Blog
Housing
NYCHA’s Physical Conditions Remain the Worst in the City
Insights from the 2017 Housing and Vacancy Survey
August 29, 2018
Every three years, the U.S. Census Bureau conducts a New York City Housing and Vacancy Survey (HVS), which provides the most comprehensive information available on the size, nature, and condition of New York City’s housing stock.
Blog
City Budget
5 Myths and Facts about the NYC FY 2024 Budget
August 15, 2023
Let’s unpack the facts behind some common myths about New York City’s budget.
Blog
City Budget
Delaying the Pain
The truth about cost-cutting in New York City's November Plan
December 15, 2010
A closer look at the City November 2011 savings plan reveals two notable points: Nearly two-thirds consists of new revenue, and expenditure cuts are modest, although health, welfare, libraries and cultural institutions bear most of the burden.
Blog
City Budget
Spending In Perspective
NYC FY 2024 Executive Budget
May 23, 2023
While proposed fiscal year 2024 City funds spending declines 2.2 percent from what is currently projected for fiscal year 2023, it is 7.5 percent higher than fiscal year 2022.
Blog
Pensions & Benefits
2019 Benefit Sweetener Scorecard
New York State Bill Tracker
May 01, 2019
For the remaining seven weeks of the legislative session, members will propose to enhance the benefits of State and local public employees and retirees.
Blog
Public Workforce
Why Spend to Save?
Early Retirement Incentives Save Less than Attrition
January 28, 2021
ERIs are a more costly workforce reduction strategy than attrition or layoffs.
Op Ed
City Budget
Eric Adams’ plan to eliminate NYC’s budget gap is very achievable — and desperately needed
New York Post
September 22, 2022
The best way to protect New York’s future is to stabilize the budget and prioritize and better manage critical services.
Blog
Education
Target School Aid to Avoid the Most Painful Cuts
May 12, 2020
With the State budget being realigned, now is the time to revisit how New York distributes its school aid dollars by accounting for student need, district wealth, and total district revenues.
Blog
City Budget
Scant Savings
Agencies Must Increase Efficiency to Meet Budget Target
February 15, 2017
The $3.8 billion Citywide Savings Program features little in the way of savings from increasing the efficiency of government operations.