 Good afternoon, New York City When I took office a year ago, I promise to give stuff done for our city. I Promise that we would build a safer more prosperous and equitable New York and New York that works for everyone and my administration is delivering on that promise For the second month in a row Major crimes are down and we have taken thousands of guns off our streets Our subways are getting safer in December we reach our billionth rider of the year That is the most rides on the system since 2019 Our economy is also getting back on track. We have added nearly a hundred and ninety thousand new jobs We are investing record amounts in affordable housing and tourism is booming This is the city that New York is want and deserve This is the city that are responsible and focus fiscal year 2024 preliminary budget continues to make possible Before I go into details, I want to acknowledge that we have much to be proud of our City has shown is courage compassion and Can do spirit as we recover from the pandemic Over the past year. We funded and will continue to support programs that benefit everyday New Yorkers still Summon our city continue to struggle and although the economy has been strong is slowing At the same time we face significant challenges. I Want to be clear in order to keep moving forward while preserving the programs and services we value We must be careful and make the best use of our resources since day one fiscal discipline has been the hallmark of this administration Administration We are focused on governing efficiently and measuring success not by how much we spend But by our achievements This budget protects funding for the essential services that continue to keep the city safe and clean Drive equity and affordability and keep us on the path to prosperity We understand that the communities we make today affect our children our grandchildren and The kind of city we create for them With proper planning and foresight. We can assure that New York City remains a beacon of opportunity for future generations We crafted this budget in an environment of economic and fiscal uncertainty And while our country has made an amazing recovery since the darkest days of the pandemic The national economy has slowed as the Federal Reserve raises interest rates to tamp down inflation Most economists predict that it will cool more in the coming months They slow down will reduce the revenues that we have used to pay for programs and services That benefit all New Yorkers at the same time it will increase demand for city services as you can see Financial markets decline substantially over the last year and following two years of extra ordinary profits and bonuses Market declines have slowed Wall Street activity leading to job losses At home our cities economic indicators are mixed As I mentioned earlier nearly a hundred and ninety thousand jobs have been added since the start of my administration While our cities economic recovery was slower in the early part of the pandemic We have now recovered almost 90% of the jobs lost during the pandemic and an annual growth rate That is higher than the country and the state Let me repeat Under this administration New York City's job growth is moving at a faster rate than the rest of the country And we currently expect to reach pre-pandemic job levels by next fall That's a full quarter earlier than previously expected however real estate sales have slowed because of rising interest rates and Although New Yorkers are returning to work Office vacancy rates the amount of space that is unleashed by companies remain at a record high This weakens the commercial office market and has a negative impact on the property tax the city's single largest source of revenue While we expect office attendance to continue to increase We're also addressing vacancies through the proposals in our new New York action plan That includes making it easier to convert some offices into affordable housing On top of a slowing national and local economy. We face fiscal challenges new and unfunded needs the arrival of nearly 40,000 asylum seekers Created unexpected course of more than one billion dollars this fiscal year We are conducting a new analysis to determine an updated estimate given the influx of asylum seekers We've seen in recent weeks And while I am grateful that our partners in Washington allocated some funding to help us cover a portion of these Expenses this would not come close to covering what we need New Yorkers will be left foot in the bill now and in the future We will continue to push for relief from the state and the federal governments So that we can avoid straining our budget and our capacity to provide city services for everyday New Yorkers Additionally, our city's healthcare costs are growing significantly The federal stimulus that has supported our pandemic recovery will decline and sunset in fiscal year 2025 And we are negotiating new labor deals with nearly all of the city unions These settlements will add billions of dollars to our city's budget As the economy slows so will our revenue growth This creates the perfect storm We will still need to support the core services that New York is dependent upon every day But with fewer resources in addition We face billions of dollars in new and unfunded costs related to asylum seekers labor deals in healthcare So we must be more efficient We must make smart decision Invest wisely and give New Yorkers the most bang for their buck The fiscal year 2024 preliminary budget is balanced at a hundred and two billion point seven hundred and two point seven billion One point seven billion lower than it was in the November plan fiscal year 2023 remains balanced Outyear gaps are three point two billion in fiscal year 25 five billion in 2026 and six point five billion in 2027 by staying focused on savings and efficiency We will bring these gaps down over the course of the financial plan We balanced fiscal year 2024 by reorganizing additional revenue and savings We updated our revenue forecast to add an additional 1.7 billion dollars in fiscal year 23 and more than 700 million in fiscal year 24 these gains along with savings of more than 550 million allowed us to balance fiscal year 2024 as Always we have remained focused on savings in this plan Savings protect our city's economic recovery and have been a vital part of our administration's fiscal strategy from the beginning Our preliminary budget achieves more than half a billion dollars in saving over fiscal years 23 and 24 This brings total savings in the November plan and preliminary budget to three billion dollars over the two years And we accomplished this without laying off a single employee or reducing services We achieved most of our savings in this budget through the vacancy reduction initiative Which took down more than 4,300 vacant positions citywide in each year of the financial plan This generated savings of just over a hundred and eighty million this fiscal year and 350 million in fiscal year 2024 Some will argue that vacancy reduction results in agencies not being able to do their jobs Don't believe them There are 23,000 open positions still on the books Which leaves ample room in agency budgets to hire for critical roles In this budget, we're limiting spending Nearly all new needs are self-funded with existing resources and Over fiscal years 2023 and 2024 we paid for nearly half a billion dollars and new needs with savings With more self-funded by agencies one of the most powerful lessons. We have learned over the past few years Is the importance of setting aside resources for unexpected emergencies? This preliminary budget maintains reserves at a record 8.3 billion dollars So that we can respond effectively to any unforeseen events I'm proud that despite the many many challenges. I've mentioned our budget Protects funding for the transformative programs. We rolled out over the past year Like the earned income tax credit that puts money back into the pockets of working families or the 100,000 paid summer jobs that open the door to opportunity for our young people These centers for employers and property owners to develop more child care spaces so parents can return to work In violence prevention programs for communities most affected by the epidemic of gun violence Since the beginning of this administration, we've also invested substantially in our students This includes more resources for students with disabilities for literacy and dyslexia screenings Summer enrichment healthy food career pathways and gifted and talented programs Even with federal stimulus money running out We've kept per student funding at a higher level than before the pandemic But as we've said from day one, we need to be fiscally responsible We need to return to developing school budgets based on a number of students enrolled in a school And the needs of those students Last year to protect schools that had lost enrollment from the impacts of funding reductions We provided additional support on top of the fair student funding formula 160 million dollars for fiscal year 2023 and 80 million for fiscal year 2024 But we heard from families that some schools need more time to adjust in order to avoid disruptions for students So despite the fiscal challenges we face We have added an additional 80 million to that funding pool for fiscal year 2024 This keeps the total at 160 million for another academic year Our preliminary budget also makes inroads into the key priorities of my administration We are continuing to tackle our housing crisis created cleaner and greener city and promote efficiency in city government New Yorkers have been suffering from our housing crisis for far too long We simply do not have enough homes for those who need them So we are taking steps to address the problem We're cutting red tape to make it easier to build and upgrade affordable homes for new yorkers And we are assisting our low income neighborhoods with down payments Tenor protections and more through our housing our neighbors and get stuff built initiatives New yorkers like to move fast And they deserve a city government that works just as quickly That is why we are making improvements at key touch points We are implementing a citywide building code that would allow necessary improvements to be made for both residential and commercial builders This will save time and money on upgrades and will help new yorkers live and work safely in their homes and offices As a leader in the fight against climate change We want all our agencies to be a part of reducing greenhouse gas emissions That's why we've authorized several agencies to hire chief Decarbonization officers who will lead the way to a greener future And as you know, I hate rats We're expanding our rat reduction initiative to reduce damage to homes and businesses and improve our quality of life Our city uses capital funding to build and maintain the infrastructure we rely on Capital funding enables us to invest in our city's future by building More affordable housing along with parks health care facilities and public spaces It also helps us keep our schools and streets safe keep our water supply clean and protect the environment In this plan we're tackling a broad range of priorities Our investment in the public private partnership and willis point would transform the neighborhood by creating Thousands of new affordable homes a rural class soccer stadium acres of public space and a hotel And as a bonus it will generate nearly 16 000 new jobs NDOE schools across the city will invest in safety measures for students and staff Every student deserves to feel safe at school and this budget is making it happen And on the west side of Manhattan We are renovating the historic riverside park soldiers and sellers monument and plaza New Yorkers who use a park have long been calling for its restoration Traffic safety is public safety And we are deepening our commitment to vision zero and more Walking and cycling should never result in accidents or fatalities So we are making targeted improvements to street safety across all five boroughs This includes safe routes in the Bronx and stan island Select bus service in south brooklyn and is stalling and upgrading traffic signals And since new yorkers also rely on our waterways to get around We will be repairing our marine infrastructure on stan island and in manhattan Climate change affects all of us To reduce greenhouse gas emissions and improve air quality We are accelerating projects that will meet the target set by local law 97 New york city is aiming high in the fight against climate change And we won't give up until we create a healthier and more resilient city for everyone The initiatives that I have discussed today play a part in creating the city that all new yorkers want A city that is safe equitable and prosperous I know there will be those who say we should do things differently That we should extend ourselves further save less and spend more But as mayor The book stops with me It is my responsibility to keep our city on a stable path Whether it's new labor contracts asylum seeker course Or the next unexpected event The bills will come due And I cannot allow new yorkers to suffer while cities Fortunes to see so up and down in response Our discipline An efficient budget keeps us safe and allows us to remain on an upward track It allows us to continue to protect and build the greatest city in the world The city That we are all proud to call home new york