City officials said they will likely miss a deadline to comply with a class-size mandate set by state law.

The admission came amid an hours long City Council hearing where local lawmakers pressed school construction officials about their compliance.

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City officials said they will likely miss a deadline to comply with a class-size mandate set by state law

The admission came amid an hours long City Council hearing where local lawmakers pressed school construction officials about their compliance

A 2022 state law requires city public schools to cap class sizes between 20 and 25 students — depending on the grade — by September 2028. The schools chancellor alluded to the challenge

A 2022 state law requires city public schools to cap class sizes between 20 and 25 students — depending on the grade — by September 2028. The schools chancellor alluded to the challenge.

“I think it’s going to be very difficult to get to 80% by September,” Schools Chancellor Kamar Samuels said.

City officials said they plan to add 4,600 new seats by this fall to meet the requirement.

On average, it takes four years for a new school or an addition to a school to be built, according to city officials.

On the minds of council members was also the city’s budget gap and financial headwinds.

“If our bond rating is lowered, would that increase the cost to borrow money?” Bronx Councilmember Eric Dinowitz said.

“We might need someone from OMB to really speak to that one. We’re not funding experts. We just use the funding provided by OMB,” Cora Liu, capital planning management, School Construction Authority, said. “I would surmise that if it would cost more to borrow money, I would really love SCA’s opinion.”

Three bond rating firms recently changed their fiscal outlook for the city from stable to negative — a step before potentially downgrading the city’s bond ratings.

A change in bond ratings affects the city’s borrowing potential and impacts some building projects.

Another contentious issue was the department’s “hold harmless” policy that keeps public schools at the same funding levels despite enrollment changes.

“At what point do we acknowledge that we are funding empty seats? Is there a long-term plan to phase this out? Or is this now a permanent policy?” Queens Councilmember Phil Wong asked.

“Continuing to have those difficult conversations. No decision has been made on hold harmless,” Samuels said.