New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani outlined a portion of $1.7 billion in proposed municipal spending cuts in a video released early Wednesday while vowing to keep residents informed "every step of the way."
Mamdani, 34, appeared in the 2-minute video to give an update on the city's plan to drive down the projected $5.4 billion budget gap over the next two years.
"As someone who believes deeply in the responsibility of government to deliver for working-class people, I also believe it's our responsibility to deliver a government that's efficient with every single dollar being put to the best possible use," Mamdani said in the clip. "That's why two months ago, I asked agencies across city government to find $1.7 billion in savings without compromising essential services. Here are just a few things we found so far: Even just by capping how much we spend on paper, pens and office supplies, we're going to save more than $27 million."
Here's a detailed look at some aspects of the propose $1.7 billion in savings, according to Mamdani's public pitch:
Mamdani said New York City had been paying far too much money to outside contractors, compelling an immediate change by his administration designed to save millions.
"The city was paying for a lot of work from outside contractors," Mamdani said. "It was costing us far too much, so we're bringing a lot of that work in house and saving our budget millions on things like IT services and software."
Mamdani said the review by city agencies also found discrepancies in payment for medication.
"We've also found that sometimes we've been overcharged for life-saving medicine like Naloxone," he said. "So, we're renegotiating that contract and saving another million dollars."
Mamdani said the city's Department of Social Services is also canceling its contract with McKinsey worth $9 million.
"That's $9 million that we won't be spending next year," he said.
Mamdani said on the clip that New York rents a lot of property "it doesn't actually need," signaling a call to "shrink our physical footprint" to save millions on leases.
The city's Department of Finance will also strengthen verification to ensure homeowners are receiving tax breaks as the law requires, Mamdani said.
"And we want to make sure that the programs we're delivering to New Yorkers are being used as intended," he continued. "So, we're going to strengthen verification to ensure that homeowners getting tax breaks are actually living in that home. This adds up to another $13 million a year."
Mamdani said the cuts were necessary to reduce the city's massive fiscal shortfall.
"You've heard me say this time and again: In fighting a $5.4 billion fiscal deficit, we need to tax the rich and end the drain that's been our relationship with the state for far too long. As we pursue that, though, we also have to take a close look at our own spending and cut waste wherever we can. When we're looking to put our city back on firm financial footing, no saving is too small. We'll keep you posted every step of the way. Because to deliver public goods, you have to first deliver public excellence."
City officials said in a statement released Wednesday that the initial review pertained to five categories: efficiencies in public services; contracting efficiencies; technology modernization; space consolidation and lease management; and financial adjustments and new revenue.
"Government must deliver for working people -- and every dollar in our budget must work as hard as they do," Mamdani said in a statement on the savings plan. "That's why I directed every agency to find real savings and cut waste to close our budget gap. This is just the beginning of our work to improve service delivery and make city government the most efficient it can be."