De Blasio Pushes Back On Cuomo's Proposed NY Budget

New York City NY

11 February, 2021

11:15 AM

Description

NEW YORK CITY — Gov. Andrew Cuomo's proposed upcoming state budget could short change New York City's schools and health care system by more than $1 billion, Mayor Bill de Blasio said. De Blasio's testimony in a state budget hearing Thursday effectively begged lawmakers to avert cuts and cost shifts amid the ongoing coronavirus crisis. He also asked legislators to impose a tax hike on New York's billionaires to fund city services. "I am very concerned about some very substantial and painful cuts in the state executive budget," he said. The city lost $10.5 billion in revenue during the pandemic and spent $6 billion in COVID-related expenses, de Blasio told lawmakers. Likewise, the state weathered a substantial fiscal storm during the pandemic. Cuomo's proposed 2021-2022 budget is actually a two-option affair — one assuming a low level of federal stimulus and the other with a "fair" amount of funding. De Blasio said Cuomo's budget proposals could compound the city's losses to the tunes of $310 million in cuts and $800 million in "supplanted" education costs. The effective education cuts would put a damper on plans to restore arts and advanced placement programs, de Blasio said. Health care cuts would affect people who suffer from substance misuse, survivors of domestic violence, youth, those in foster care and seniors, he said. "All of these people who need help and are vulnerable would lose that help if this state executive budget were passed as it is now," he said. The losses could be worse if the federal government doesn't come through with billions of dollars in much-anticipated stimulus, de Blasio said. "We all hope and pray for that funding, but if it does not come through that means the executive budget would be altered and there would be very substantial cuts to municipalities all over New York State, obviously with New York City experiencing the biggest cuts," he said. De Blasio noted 120 New York billionaires increased their wealth by $77 billion during the pandemic. "We need taxes on the wealthy so we could protect working people, everyday people and provide the services they need," he said.