Dearest gentle reader,
Welcome to the Mamdani Meter’s weekly scorecard, in which we assess how much progress the administration made in the previous week.
Week 6: A busy week of groundwork
During week 6 of the Mamdani Administration, three promises saw movement. City Hall codified NYC’s sanctuary city status and kicked off the search for new daycare providers and public bathroom vendors — the kind of unsexy procurement steps that only hit above the fold of The Architecht’s Newspaper (but actually).
Mr. Mamdani Goes to Wash-i-mean-Albany
Last week Mamdani visited his former workplace to advocate for NYC’s budgetary needs, i.e., ask for more money.
As expected, he urged the legislature to allow an extra 2% income tax on the top 1%, because “the wealthiest New Yorkers should pay their fair share.”
He then spent most of his time talking about New York City's budget deficit, which could be anywhere between $7 billion and $12 billion (that’s about 10% of the entire budget, so a huge deal). Mamdani argued that Albany is in part to blame for the crisis because it’s been treating its wealthiest locality like a cash cow.
No one gives more and gets less in return than New York City. New York City contributes 54.5% of state revenue but only receives 40.5% back.
If you’re thinking, “Wait, isn’t that in direct contradiction of the wealth tax?” don’t worry, Comptroller Mark Levine addressed your question during his testimony later that day.
Yes, New Yorkers, on average, pay more income tax. However, on top of regular income taxes, the state charges NYC extra for programs and also blocks it from funds every other city is allowed to access. Here are a couple of his examples:
New York City receives 20% reimbursement for its core public health costs. Every other locality gets 36% of their costs back. The comptroller estimates this costs NYC an extra $90 Million each year.
“Raise the Age” moved 16- and 17-year-olds out of the NY state adult criminal justice system and into youth-focused courts and services. More than half of the affected teens live in New York City, yet NYC is the only region barred from receiving state funding to serve them (and, according to the comptroller, the $125 million NYC is owed is sitting unused since there aren’t enough eligible youths elsewhere in the state!!)
So NYC is clearly treated differently. But also, rich people often give more to the government than they get back in direct benefits like food assistance.
The difference here is that New York City is not a single wealthy household. While NYC is home to more billionaires than any other city, it is also home to a population where 1 out of 4 lives in poverty.
That is the distinction the Mayor is making: asking the wealthy to pay more inside the city may be fair. Shifting extra costs onto the city as a whole is unjust.
Why this matters
The millionaire's tax and fairer cost-sharing aren't just about balancing a spreadsheet; they're the financial foundation that determine whether the mayor’s ambitious promises live or die. Without Albany's cooperation, the 200,000 units of housing Zohran promised are not fundable, and buses are much less likely to become fare-free.
Next step to watch
Do the governor and legislature treat Mamdani’s request as a package – more local revenue authority and fairer cost-sharing – or does it say yes to one and ignore the other? We’ll know more in April.
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— Niki