Mayor Zohran Mamdani is threatening to raise New Yorkers\u2019 property taxes if Gov. Kathy Hochul doesn\u2019t approve a tax hike on the wealthy, NY1 has learned.<\/p>\n
\u201cRaising property taxes would be no one’s preferred option, partly because the system is so flawed, riddled with inequality,\u201d City Comptroller Mark Levine, a Democrat, told NY1 in an interview after exiting a closed-door briefing Tuesday with Mamdani and his budget aides.<\/p>\n
What You Need To Know<\/p>\n
Mayor Zohran Mamdani is threatening to raise New Yorkers\u2019 property taxes if Gov. Kathy Hochul doesn\u2019t approve a tax hike on the wealthy, NY1 has learned
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One of the few ways a mayor can raise money at the city level is change the property tax rate \u2014 an undertaking not seen since former Mayor Michael Bloomberg was in office
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Mamdani said the city\u2019s two-year, projected budget gap now stands at $5.4 billion \u2014 a shaved down figure after previously estimating that the city\u2019s overall deficit was roughly $12 billion \u2014 an amount he compared to \u201cthe Great Recession”<\/p>\n
\u201cIt’s essentially a regressive tax as it\u2019s currently structured, hitting homeowners and communities of color much more than it hits homeowners in wealthier areas. So, this should not be anyone’s choice of how we solve this, nor, by the way, should drawing down reserves,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
One of the few ways a mayor can raise money at the city level is change the property tax rate \u2014 an undertaking not seen since former Mayor Michael Bloomberg was in office.<\/p>\n
While it\u2019s unclear what the new property tax increase would be, Levine said Mamdani also discussed an order to cut spending at agencies.<\/p>\n
Mamdani said the city\u2019s two-year, projected budget gap now stands at $5.4 billion \u2014 a shaved down figure after previously estimating that the city\u2019s overall deficit was roughly $12 billion \u2014 an amount he compared to \u201cthe Great Recession.\u201d<\/p>\n
Today, I\u2019m releasing the City\u2019s preliminary budget. After years of fiscal mismanagement, we\u2019re staring at a $5.4 billion budget gap \u2014 and two paths.<\/p>\n
One: Albany can raise taxes on the ultra-wealthy and the most profitable corporations and address the fiscal imbalance between\u2026<\/p>\n
\u2014 Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani (@NYCMayor) February 17, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cAlbany can raise taxes on the ultra-wealthy and the most profitable corporations and address the fiscal imbalance between our city and state,\u201d said Mamdani in a social media post describing how he plans to present his preliminary budget.<\/p>\n \u201c[A] last resort: balance the budget on the backs of working people using the only tools at the City’s disposal. The first path matches a structural crisis with a sustainable and fair solution. I know where I stand,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n The pitch comes just one day after Hochul said she will give City Hall an extra $1.5 billion in state funding<\/a>\u00a0\u2014 a deal that still needs to be approved by the state legislature.\u00a0<\/p>\n The governor appeared to downplay Mamdani\u2019s ask at a separate press conference in Manhattan Tuesday.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201c[The city] is required by law to announce where it is today, but it’s not resolved until there\u2019s a lot of negotiation with the City Council and a review with his budget team of what their real expenses are and what they need to be, and that\u2019s not due until July, so there\u2019s a lot of time to work this out,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m not certain there\u2019s a property tax increase,\u201d she added when asked about Mamdani\u2019s plan.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s between the City Council and the mayor, they\u2019re gonna look at that,\u201d she added.\u00a0<\/p>\n Democratic City Council Speaker Julie Menin was also briefed by Mamdani ahead of the public budget presentation, but did not respond to an immediate request for comment.\u00a0<\/p>\n The city budget is not officially due until July 1.<\/p>\n Last year\u2019s budget, passed by the City Council and signed into law by former Mayor Eric Adams, stood at $116 billion<\/a>.<\/p>\n