During an online virtual forum, eight leading mayoral Democratic candidates laid out their proposals for dealing with the fiscal issues for the country's largest city. The term for current New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, a Democrat, runs out at the end of this year because he's barred from running for more than two consecutive terms.

Citizens Budget Commission President Andrew S. Rein, who moderated the forum, told candidates that New York City's preliminary budget is currently projected to be $1 billion short and it's also facing recurring budget gaps of more than $5 billion in the next three years. In addition, the New York state and city comptrollers both have said recently those budget gaps could grow larger.