Dear New Yorkers,

Yesterday, Mayor Eric Adams released a $109.4 billion preliminary city budget that was less gloomy than a prior plan.

This budget scaled back on previously announced service cuts, thanks to better-than-expected revenue projections — and an anticipated increase in state aid for asylum seekers.

The budget is for the next fiscal year, which begins July 1. It includes an estimated $2.9 billion more in tax revenues than the mayor’s budget office had previously projected.

Last week the mayor started to reveal promised reversals of some budget cutbacks he had rolled out in November, including restoration of a job-training program in the Parks Department, some Police Academy classes, and service hours for the Department of Education’s Summer Rising program. 

Adams also said over the weekend that the city’s three library systems would not be required to make further spending cuts, after already having to eliminate Sunday service last month. He previously had announced police, fire and other uniformed agencies would face no further reductions.

Adams is counting on Gov. Kathy Hochul and the state legislature to step up with funding for migrant care. The governor obliged with a $2.4 billion proposed allocation for the state fiscal year that begins April 1, up from the $1.9 billion provided in the current year.

But overall in her $223 billion budget proposal, Hochul is trying to slow the growth in state spending and convince New Yorkers the state can’t afford major increases.

Despite calls from progressives in Albany to raise taxes on the rich, both the governor and the mayor said they opposed any increase for fears it would encourage wealthier New Yorkers to move.

Read more about the proposed budgets here.

Weather scoop by New York Metro Weather

Wednesday’s Weather Rating: 3/10. Sunshine makes its grand return, but a very cold air mass is in place today. High temperatures barely reach the mid 20s, with wind chill values in the teens and a breeze keeping us in check. The vibes are cold!

Our Other Top Story

  • Following a ruling by an oversight panel, Eddie Rodriguez, the president of the union representing New York’s City’s public sector clerical workers, has been expelled. He was also ordered to repay members more than $30,000 for a car service. The panel found that Rodriguez had improperly used member dues from District Council 37’s Local 1549 to splurge on a black car service from his Rockland County home to the union’s office in Manhattan’s Financial District more than 100 times since March 2020, in violation of the union’s financial code.

Reporter’s Notebook

City Aims to Address Flooding With New Program

Flooding is only becoming more extreme and frequent in New York City due to climate change — and now a new citywide initiative is bringing together community members, experts and city agencies to tackle the problem.

Rainproof NYC, an initiative of the Mayor’s Office of Climate and Environmental Justice that launched Tuesday, aims to address problems stemming from bouts of intense heavy rain. The resiliency nonprofit Rebuild by Design — which last year released a report on “how to turn the concrete jungle into a sponge” — is helping to lead three working groups that will focus on managed retreat, how to prepare for and deal with increased rainfall and how individuals and groups can play a role.

Over six months, the effort will culminate in recommendations of policies and projects to make New York City more resilient in the face of wetter weather.

— Samantha Maldonado

Things To Do

Here’s what’s going on around the city this week.

  • Thursday, Jan. 18: Open Art Space, a drop-in program for LGBTQ+ high school students interested in art-making. No experience necessary; MetroCards, snacks and art supplies provided. Free from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. every Thursday, at the Museum of Modern Art’s Education and Research Building (4 West 54 St.) in Manhattan.
  • Thursday, Jan. 18: “Moscow Moscow Moscow,” a modern interpretation of Anton Chekhov’s “The Three Sisters,” performed by the Herbert Von King Theatre Workshop. Free from 5:30 to 8 p.m. at the Herbert Von King Cultural Center in Brooklyn.
  • Sunday, Jan. 21: An accessible, indoor garden Memory Tour for individuals with dementia and their caregivers. Free (limited space, registration required) from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden.

THE KICKER: It finally happened! NYC broke its 701-day streak of being officially snowless (read: less than 1 inch of snowfall recorded in Central Park).

Thanks, as always, for reading. Make it a great Wednesday.

Love,

THE CITY

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