"A quick tribute to the Citizens Budget Commission....you're a great model of public policy institutions like this across the country; no more important time than today for this kind of work." Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner
With the city's 2011 operating budget recently approved -- and the $46 billion, five-year capital plan up for review in the coming months -- it is worth asking how well current budgets provide for repair and maintenance of our roads, bridges, tunnels, parks and other public infrastructure. The answer is disappointing.
CBC Senior Research Associate Maria Doulis testifies before the City Council Finance Committee on the Executive Budget for fiscal year 2009. With a surplus projected in the current year and a budget balanced for fiscal year 2009, this is a critical opportunity to think about the long-term fiscal challenges facing the City.
CBC comments on Executive Budget for fiscal year 2009 released by Mayor Michael Bloomberg. The budget is based on a realistic assessment of the economic problem facing New York City and presents a sound strategy for dealing with it in the coming fiscal year. Key decisions made since the January Financial Plan include: Increasing the Program to Eliminate the Gap (PEG) from $885 million to $1.3 billion for fiscal year 2009, the retirement of $2 billion of debt, and reducing the future debt service burden through a 20 percent reduction in the capital program.
This letter to Mayor Michael Bloomberg states that the Executive Budget is a critical juncture for New York City and for the mayoralty. CBC offers specific recommendations for improving the City’s fiscal health.
CBC releases a letter to Mayor Michael Bloomberg recommending five fiscal actions that it hopes will be priorities in the final months of the mayor's tenure. The letter commends the Mayor on his notable fiscal achievements to date and defines an agenda for further fiscal reforms – the need for better expenditure control, more disciplined debt policy, and better tax policy.
This testimony discusses a report on the condition of the City's infrastructure and the nature of the City's capital planning process. The City has a ten-year capital planning process, unique among most other state and local governments. This 10-year process, however has become inadequate to assess and address the City's infrastructure needs.
This report analyzes Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s PLANYC, a new long-range planning initiative for New York City's capital assets and infrastructure. The report identifies the four greatest challenges confronting this initiative and makes recommendations for overcoming them.
This report analyzes Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s PLANYC, a long-range planning initiative that deserves both praise and effective implementation. The report identifies challenges confronting the initiative and makes four recommendations to overcome them.
In this report summary, CBC lays out six challenges that prevent New York City from making the most of its parks, and six recommendations to address them.
