Eric Adams’ ‘best budget ever’ by the numbers

New York City Mayor Eric Adams released a $115 billion executive budget proposal for the coming fiscal year on Thursday, touting it as the “best budget ever” as he faces a competitive reelection battle as a newly declared independent candidate.

The plan, the largest in the city’s history, is flush with new spending for a bevy of programming and services ranging from increased funds for nonprofit social services providers to expanding early childhood education and afterschool programming. While Adams’ previous budget announcements included wide-ranging cuts aimed at offsetting the city’s spending on asylum-seekers, the mayor credited his “strong fiscal management” for allowing the city to spend more on programming in fiscal year 2026, which starts July 1.

“This is the best budget ever for families and young people,” Adams said, speaking at a press conference at Bayside High School in Queens – his alma mater.

But despite the mayor’s rosy presentation, fiscal watchdogs are sounding the alarm over the likelihood of an economic recession and the threats of federal funding cuts from the Trump administration and Congress. They’ve expressed concerns that the mayor’s proposal factors in little margin of error if either of these scenarios occur. This will no doubt be a hot topic in the weeks to come as the City Council and Adams administration hash out a deal. 

Here are some highlights from the mayor’s proposal.

$115 billion: The total expense budget, which would be the biggest agreement the city has implemented upon adoption.That’s about $3 billion more than the $112 billion agreement that was struck and adopted last June and $600 million more than the preliminary plan he released in January.

$8.45 billion: The total allocated to the city’s reserves. That includes $5 billion in the retiree health benefits trust, $2 billion in the rainy day fund, $1.2 billion in the general reserve, and $250 million in the capital stabilization reserve.

$4.6 billion, $5.8 billion, $5.7 billion: The respective budget gaps between anticipated revenue and expected spending in fiscal years 2027, 2028 and 2029.

$7.5 billion: The total amount the city has spent on asylum-seeker related costs since spring of 2022. 

$1 billion: How much in city resources was used to offset the $1 billion in asylum-seeker aid the mayor said the Adams administration did not receive from the state. 

$9.6 billion: Roughly the amount of money in the city's latest budget for 2025 that comes from federal funds – about 8%. This is a number that has been frequently cited over the last couple of months by the City Council and budgeting experts as they express concerns about potential cuts. 

6%: How much of Adams’ initial budget proposal for fiscal year 2026 relies on federal funding, according to New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli. 

$3.4 billion: Funding to support about 34,000 New York City police officers in fiscal year 2026. Earlier this week, he’d announced the city was on track to secure 35,000 officers by fall 2026 – a number on par with pre-pandemic levels. 

$1.4 billion: Baselined funding for popular city services like libraries, the City University of New York, sanitation programs, cultural institutions and early childhood education – programs that were funded by expiring federal funding and thus at risk.

$167 million: Restored, base-lined funding to support the city’s 3-K and pre-K programs. This falls short of the at least $197 million the City Council has argued is necessary to make both programs universal.

20,000: The number of additional students from kindergarten through fifth grade who would be able to participate in after-school under the mayor’s proposal to dramatically expand the program over the next three years, bringing the total number of participants to 184,000. 

5,850: The number of new congregate-style supportive housing units announced by the Adams administration earlier this week to help the city meet its goal to create 15,000 by the end of 2030.

7,000: The number of summer school youth jobs the city will fund.

June 30: The deadline for the New York City Council and the mayor to come to an agreement on the budget.