Fiscal Policy Institute

Mayor Zohran Mamdani has ordered city agencies to identify 2.5% in savings to address a projected $6 billion budget gap for 2027, building on earlier cost-cutting measures. The administration aims to survey operations for inefficiencies, with $1.77 billion in savings already identified this year. Critics and analysts question the impact on services and exemptions, while supporters call the target ambitious but achievable.

Olivia Killingsworth, a Brooklyn resident with a rare genetic condition, faces losing her Essential Plan health coverage as New York reverts to a previous eligibility formula, potentially leaving 450,000 low-income residents uninsured. The state’s policy change, triggered by federal legislation, reduces income thresholds for eligibility from 250% to 200% of the federal poverty line.