Why the Budget Shifted from Surplus to Deficit

The Independent Budget Office led testimonies as the City Council begins reviewing the mayor's preliminary budget. Louisa Chafee, director of the New York City Independent Budget Office (IBO), a non-partisan source of information on the budget and economy, gives their assessment of the assumptions underlying the budget and the mayor's plan to close the deficit.
 

Photo: The Committee on Finance Holds Preliminary Budget Hearing For FY2027 with testimony from the Independent Budget Office, March 10, 2026 (Emil Cohen/NYC Council Media Unit)