Mayor Eric Adams has officially unveiled his executive budget on Wednesday, the administration’s plan for funding city agencies into the next year.

The $106.7 billion budget is set to fund mental health programs for teens, climate education and promote workforce development training and internships.

Adams said that his administration worked hard to balance a budget that is facing growing costs from asylum seekers and labor contracts.


What You Need To Know

  • On Wednesday, Mayor Eric Adams unveiled his executive budget a $106.7 billion plan to fund local government

  • The plan makes investments in climate education, workforce development and mental health resources

  • The plan also gave a minor reprieve to public libraries and emergency service agencies like the FDNY and the Sanitation Department that were facing a third round of cuts

  • The official budget increased by $4 billion since Adams' initial proposal in January

“We must budget wisely in crafting the executive budget. We face a substantial challenge funding 10-billion-dollars over the course of two fiscal years,” said Adams.

The budget, which is about $4 billion higher than his preliminary plan from January, comes just weeks after the Mayor announced a third round of cuts across most city agencies.

Starting last June, City Hall instituted the “Program to Eliminate the Gap” in an effort to find significant savings across city government.

Officials say that the program was a success in finding more than $1 billion in savings, however it came at a cost to education, nonprofits and social services.

Adams said that all agencies participated and found ways to be efficient and that some were spared in the latest round of cuts.

“We reached our number. Now let’s look and see who we can hold harmless and who can put money back partially,” Mayor Adams.

Though libraries were spared in the latest cuts, they still face an over $36 million shortfall.

The city budget also is working off expectations from Albany — who provides a significant chunk of funding through the state budget, which remains more than three weeks late.

Without it, city officials are working off projections that could not materialize.

“One initial reaction was frustration with Albany about the fact that here we are doing the city’s executive budget without the information that we really need,” said the City Comptroller Brad Lander.

Another unknown remains funding for asylum seekers.

The city has applied for $650 million in funding from the federal government but has received a paltry $8 million so far. The crisis is expected to cost the city upwards of $4 billion.

“They’re basically hanging us out to dry,” said Brooklyn Councilmember Justin Brannan in describing the lack of federal help. “The city’s compassion is infinite, but our resources certainly are not.”

Brannan has also noted that there is more than $8 billion in reserves that are available for the city to use on the crisis.

Lander said on Wednesday that the majority of costs for migrants are toward emergency shelters versus providing services.

He said more investment in legal help with applying for asylum status and work permits would help reduce costs.

“I would like to see if folks could focus on services to asylum seekers to help them get on their feet and move out of shelter and that isn’t yet in this budget,” said Lander.

City councilmembers met with Adams throughout the day on his budget and lawmakers look like they are going to fight for less cuts.

“Alot of these agencies are already facing significant cuts. So now in the next month of budget negotiations, we are really going to have to drill into that and find a way out of it,” added Brannan.

The executive budget was just the next step in a long budget dance the Mayor and city council will undertake in the coming week.

The budget is due until July 1.