January 29, 2026 — Mayor Mamdani’s decision to designate agency-level chief savings officers reflects the seriousness of the city’s fiscal situation and a commitment to transparency after years of mismanagement at City Hall. Asking agencies to closely examine operations and report back on efficiencies — rather than defaulting to across-the-board PEGs — is a measured response to a $12B+ deficit and an opportunity to account for how public dollars are actually being spent. We support measures to use public dollars better to serve New Yorkers, and reiterate our commitment to ensure core services and affordability programs are protected.

Under former Mayor Eric Adams, budget decisions were often made behind closed doors, with repeated PEGs used as a first response and little clarity about their impact on services, workers, or New Yorkers’ daily lives. That approach eroded trust and weakened the city’s ability to meet today’s challenges.

Efficiencies cannot come at the expense of New Yorkers’ basic needs. We are encouraged by the administration’s indication that cuts to essential services and affordability programs are not being considered, and we will remain engaged to ensure those commitments hold. The city has options to improve its fiscal position without harming core services — including auditing wasteful consultant and surveillance contracts, addressing excessive uniformed overtime, and collecting fines from large corporate bad actors.

Ultimately, protecting New Yorkers from austerity requires state action, including rebalancing cost-sharing and raising new revenue by taxing corporations and the ultra-wealthy. We call on Governor Hochul to enact these measures at the state-level to ensure ordinary New Yorkers do not pay the price.