Dear Governor Hochul:

We write in response to your plan to provide New York City with a $1.5 billion bailout.

This bailout is unfair to the rest of the state, and we strongly urge you not to move forward with it. Hardworking families across New York should not be forced to subsidize fiscal mismanagement in New York City.

Over the past several years NYC officials made costly policy decisions, such as providing housing and healthcare to undocumented migrants, that cost the city nearly $10 billion, including another $1.2 billion next year.

The fiscal deficit New York City now faces is the direct result of poor decisions by New York City officials, such as prioritizing undocumented migrants ahead of hardworking New Yorkers.

The scale of NYC’s budget underscores this concern. The city’s budget in fiscal year (FY) 2026 was $115.9 billion, the entire state of Florida’s budget in FY 2026 was $117 billion. Over the past decade, the city’s budget has swelled more than $41 billion, a 54% increase. During the same period, NYC tax revenues have grown significantly, from approximately $54.7 billion in 2015 to $83 billion in 2026.

New York City does not have a revenue problem; it has a spending problem. 

Providing a bailout will only reward irresponsible behavior, which will lead to more bad behavior in the future. This is evidenced by Mayor Mamdani’s most recent budget plan of $127 billion, a $10 billion increase, which the mayor has threatened to pay for by increasing New York City’s property taxes if the Governor and state legislature do not increase the state’s personal income tax and corporate tax, which are already among the highest in the nation. New York City needs to show fiscal restraint; a $1.5 billion bailout will only lead to more reckless spending. We urge you to rethink your plan to use statewide taxpayer funds to bailout New York City officials’ reckless spending.