$107B NYC 2024 Budget Deal Reached Right Before Deadline

NEW YORK CITY — Tense talks between Mayor Eric Adams and City Council members came down to the wire, but the two sides Thursday unveiled a $107 billion deal for 2024's budget.

The handshake deal — which was reached just days before a July 1 deadline — avoids cuts to schools and restores $36 million in much-needed funding to the city's libraries, officials said.

Adams obliquely acknowledged difficulties during the budget talks but stressed common ground.

"We have so much to be proud of in his adopted budget: it is on time, balanced and fiscally responsible," the mayor said. "It strategically directs our resources to programs that will support everyday New Yorkers."

City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams, the mayor's no-relation legislative counterpart, was more comfortable addressing differences.

She said the mayor's proposed budget required Council Members to fight against cuts to many services.

"We were really starting at ground zero, literally at ground zero," she said.

City officials only provided a bare-bones look at the budget Thursday, but two of the biggest takeaways related to schools and libraries.

No public school will have a starting budget lower than last year's, even if their student population declined, officials said.

And the deal appeared to restore $36 million in funding to libraries, likely sparing them from feared reduced hours, weekend closures and fewer programs.

The budget got more than a whisper of support from library officials. In a joint statement, Brooklyn Public Library President Linda E. Johnson, Queens Public Library President Dennis M. Walcott and New York Public Library President Anthony W. Marx called it a victory for all New Yorkers.

"Amid unprecedented attempts to ban books and silence diverse voices, New York City has sent a clear message about the power of public libraries that will be seen and felt across our nation," their statement reads.

But not all officials and advocates gave the budget deal praise.

City Comptroller Brad Lander, among other critiques, dinged what he called short-sighted cuts to restorative justice programs at Rikers Island.

Likewise, Greg Morris, CEO of the New York City Employment and Training Coalition, criticized the budget for not focusing on human services that could include the Rikers programs, as well as workforce development efforts.

"Despite recent data highlighting job growth in the health and care industry to respond to our City’s post-pandemic needs, and an administration that champions equity and inclusivity, this budget just doesn’t add up for the human services sector workforce - 55% of whom are Black and Brown women," Morris said in a statement.