Mamdani’s rent freeze faces keyboard vote
The final vote on June 25 could pass a rent freeze for about 1 million rent-stabilized apartments in Mamdani City. Public hearings will be held throughout New York.
Mayor Zoran Mamdani’s New York City budget was released earlier this week and totals $124.7 billion.
The report was delivered in an atmosphere of celebration for the first-year mayor, who has overcome a huge funding gap.
But it came at the cost of easing some promises on rent subsidies and class sizes.
Mamdani’s stance on urban rental subsidy programs
During his mayoral campaign, Mamdani said he wanted to continue expanding New York City’s homeless program, the City’s Combating Homelessness and Eviction Prevention Grants. The cost of the program has ballooned from $25 million in 2019 to $1.2 billion in 2025, according to the report.
“We will ensure that the expansion proceeds as planned in accordance with city laws,” Mamdani said.
However, the mayor’s budget release said the city is working to “stabilize the CityFHEPS program in the long term,” resulting in approximately $519 million in budget savings.
The administration says this means slower growth and efforts to remove voucher holders from long-term support.
Mayor’s position on class size requirements
Mamdani’s budget would also delay the timeline for reducing classroom sizes to meet state mandates while the city works to hire 1,000 new teachers at a cost of $122 million.
“Make no mistake about it: We are committed to fulfilling our state obligations in a meaningful way and on a realistic schedule that New Yorkers can actually rely on.”
Mamdani said on his campaign website that he plans to “ensure public schools are well-funded with equitably distributed resources, strong after-school programs, mental health counselors and nurses, compliant and effective class sizes, and integrated student bodies.”
