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Mamdani and City Council Shake on $125.8 Billion Budget That Expands Housing Vouchers

The deal ends a yearslong legal fight by funding a smaller, HPD‑run rental assistance program with phased money and explicit cost controls.

Overview

  • Mamdani and City Council Speaker Julie Menin reached a handshake on the FY2027 budget late Tuesday that sets total spending at about $125.8 billion and clears the way for a final Council vote.
  • The agreement commits $175 million in new voucher funding for FY2027 and baselines $125 million beginning in FY2028 for a new rental assistance program administered by the Department of Housing Preservation and Development.
  • The administration agreed to drop its appeal of the 2023 CityFHEPS expansion once the Council passes implementing legislation that creates the narrower HPD program.
  • The new program is substantially smaller than the Council’s 2023 expansion, is designed with eligibility limits and cost guards, and is estimated by a Council source to reach roughly 9,600 households (about 30,000 people).
  • The compromise reflects fiscal concerns after CityFHEPS costs surged in recent years, removes a proposed NYPD headcount increase from the final deal, and leaves the Council to vote to finalize the budget and the implementing voucher bill.