On January 16th, 2025, Mayor Adams released a $114.6 billion Preliminary Budget for City Fiscal Year 2026.

The Preliminary Budget includes a number of restorations and new investments that will help support New York families and children. Among these are one-year restorations for Learning to Work and Summer Rising. We are grateful for the restoration of Summer Rising funding, which is essential for enabling both parents and providers to plan ahead for summer programming for children. The proposed budget also includes new funding for tenant protections, Runaway and Homeless Youth beds, career readiness programs, rental assistance for new parents, park cleaning, and swim safety programming, among others.

However, the Preliminary Budget also maintains a number of devastating cuts that will impact the long-term future of families in our city if they are not restored in the Adopted Budget. Chief among these is a $112 million cut to the city’s 3K program, which has already faced multiple funding cuts over the course of the Adams Administration. The Preliminary Budget also fails to restore funding for a host of other vital education programs, including funding for Early Care and Education extended day seats and outreach; Special Education Pre-K classes; Community Schools; Immigrant Family Engagement; Arts in school; and the Mental Health Continuum. Additionally, the Mayor’s budget maintains cuts to vital social service programs, including Community Food Connections and Groceries to Go, Rental Assistance, metro cards for the Summer Youth Employment Program, and Promise NYC (which helps immigrant New Yorkers access child care).

Moreover, the Preliminary Budget fails to make the kind of proactive investments that are particularly important as the City faces funding and policy threats from the new federal administration. New York must enhance supports and protections for immigrant communities, including by substantially enhancing legal defense services for immigrant New Yorkers.  City leaders must also support funding for the types of programs that strengthen families and communities, including school-based mental health clinics and community behavioral health programs; homelessness prevention and rental assistance; and a full continuum of affordable child care options.

The Preliminary Budget attributes substantial savings to a reduction in asylum seeker costs. These costs were used as justification in previous years’ budgets to enact significant cuts to vital programs and services in the city. Given the federal administration’s targeting of immigrant communities, it is more important than ever that the City Administration reject rhetoric that scapegoats or stigmatizes immigrant New Yorkers. As we look ahead to the city, state, and federal budget negotiations, we look to our city leaders to position New York as a city that prioritizes the wellbeing of all families and communities, and one that recognizes that investing in children now leads to a better future for all New York.

Summary of Actions Taken in the New York FY2026 Preliminary Budget

The Preliminary Budget for FY26 Fails to Fund Key Initiatives That Were Funded in the FY25 Adopted Budget

The City Administration funded the following investments for FY25 only, meaning these investments will end unless they are restored in this Adopted Budget.

Department of Education

• $112 million for 3K seats
• $25 million for ECE Extended Day Expansion
• $5 million for ECE Outreach
• $55 million for Special Education Pre-K classes
• $14 million for Community Schools
• $12 million for Restorative Justice Programs in schools
• $4 million for Immigrant Family Engagement
• $889,459 for the Mental Health Continuum (part of $5 million in total funding across three agencies)
• $2.5 million for LGBTQ Inclusive Curriculum
• $41 million to maintain Arts Funding
• $10 million to maintain teacher recruitment funding
• $4 million to maintain high impact tutoring funding

Department of Social Services

• $31.9 million for Community Food Connections
• $325 million for Rental Assistance
• $4.6 million for NYC Benefits Access Initiative

Department of Homeless Services

• $1.35 million for Children and Families in NYC Homeless System

Department of Youth and Community Development

• $5.5 million for SYEP Metro Cards
• $1.5 million for Youth Homelessness
• $315,000 for LGBTQIA+ Curriculum
• $4.9 million for AAPI Community Programs

Department of Health and Mental Hygiene

• $5.2 million for Groceries to Go
• $472,473 million for the Mental Health Continuum (part of $5 million in total funding across three agencies)

Health and Hospitals Corp

• $3.6 million for the Mental Health Continuum (part of $5 million in total funding across three agencies)

Administration for Children Services

• $25 million for Promise NYC

Department of Parks and Recreation

• $2.6 million for GreenThumb
• $2 million for Tree Stump Removal
• $4.1 million for Urban Park Rangers

The Preliminary Budget for FY 2026 Adds or Restores Funding for the Following Initiatives:

Department of Education

• $31 million in FY26 for Learning to Work
• $17.5 million baselined to expand the Pathways career readiness program
• $770,000 baselined to open additional school yards as playgrounds
• $80 million in FY26 for DOE portion of Summer Rising

Administration for Children’s Services

• $14.8 million FY26, $31.7 million in FY27, $32.5 million in FY28 and $32.6 million in FY29 for the Youth Safety and Success Initiative, which expands Fair Future, College Choice, Career Choice, Girls JustUs, and Assertive Community Engagement & Success.

Department of Youth and Community Development

• $2.1 million in FY26 and $5 million in outyears to expand the Fatherhood program
• $6 million baselined for Runaway Homeless Youth Expansion to support 100 additional Runaway Homeless Youth beds
• $19.6 million in FY26 for the DYCD portion of Summer Rising

Department of Social Services

• $7.6 million baselined for Anti-Harassment Tenant Protection Program
• $8.5 million baselined for Project CRIB, an initiative to connect soon-to-be parents applying for shelter with CityFHEPS rental assistance.
• $1.3 million baselined for Public Engagement Unit funding for CUNY Summer Outreach Corps and technology upgrades to support benefit access.
• $2.2 million baselined for the Mayor’s Public Engagement Unit staff to support housing placements.

Department of Parks and Recreation

• $12.4 million baselined for Second Shift Expansion, providing a second afternoon and evening shift of cleaning at 64 parks.
• $924,000 in FY26 for Tree Bed Rat Mitigation and $877,000 baselined in outyears
• $5.5 million baselined to add more lifeguards and staff to offer free swim lessons to an additional 4,800 students.

Health and Hospitals

• $2.6 million in FY26, $2.8 million in FY27, $2.9 million in FY28 and $3 million in FY29 for Baby Box Pilot, which provides free baby supplies and postpartum materials to new parents

Housing Preservation and Development

• $1.19 million in FY26 and $1.7 million in outyears to increase staffing levels for various code enforcement programs.
• $1.4 million baselined for Partners in Preservation expansion
• $779,000 baselined for additional staff for supportive housing programs

The Preliminary Budget for FY 2026 Does Not Fund City Council’s FY 2025 Initiatives

These are investments that were funded by the City Council in FY25 only and will end unless they are restored in the Adopted Budget.

Community Development

• $5.1 million for Asian-American Pacific Islander Community Support
• $14 million for Adult Literacy Initiative
• $2.5 million for the Adult Literacy Pilot Project
• $3.7 million for Communities of Color Nonprofit Stabilization Fund
• $4.59 million for Digital Inclusion and Literacy Initiative
• $5.2 million for LGBTQIA+ Community Services
• $3.225 million for Trans Equity Programs

Community Safety and Victim Services

• $5.1 million for Community Safety and Victim Services Initiative

Criminal Justice Services/Juvenile Justice

• $14.487 million for Alternatives to Incarceration programs
• $9.45 million for Discharge Planning
• $2.525 million for Diversion Programs
• $4.61 million for the Initiative to Combat Sexual Assault
• $2.638 million for Innovative Criminal Justice Programs
• $1.02 million for Support for Victims of Human Trafficking
• $3.476 million for Support for Persons Involved in the Sex Trade

Domestic Violence

• $12.01 million for Domestic Violence and Empowerment (DoVE) Initiative
• $2.45 million for Supportive Alternatives to Violent Encounters (SAVE)

Early Childhood Education

• $5.45 million for the City’s First Readers Initiative
• $600,000 for CUNY Child Care Expansion

Education

• $1.74 million for College and Career Readiness
• $3.75 million for Community Schools
• $7.14 million for Educational Programs for Students, which includes programs such as Chess in the Schools, and the Middle School Quality Initiative (distributed between DOE and DYCD)
• $5 million for the Education Equity Action Plan to support the creation of a K-12 Black Studies curriculum
• $500,000 for the Jill Chaifetz Helpline operated by Advocates for Children
• $2.8 million for LGBTQ Inclusive Curriculum.
• $925,000 million for Physical Education and Fitness
• $2 million for Social and Emotional Supports for Students, including $777,000 for the Child Mind Institute
• $4.650 million for Support for Educators, which funds professional development, training, and mentorship for teachers
• $4 million for Support for Arts Instruction
• $7.4 million for Cultural Immigrant Initiative (distributed among DCLA, DYCD, CUNY, DOE)
• $4.6 million for Digital Inclusion and Literacy Initiative (distributed among DYCD, DCLA, DFTA, DOE, and QBPL)
• $714,500 for Work-Based Learning Internships 

Environmental Initiatives

• $5.1 million for A Greener NYC
• $14.3 million for NYC Cleanup

Economic Security

• $2.8 million for the Anti-Poverty Initiative

Food Initiatives

• $8.26 million in FY24 for food pantries
• $2.134 million for Access to Healthy Food and Nutritional Education, which funds farmers markets, urban farms, community gardens, and programs to expand the use of SNAP benefits
• $1.5 million for the Food Access and Benefits Initiative (HRA) 

Health Services

• $3.620 million for Access Health NYC
• $664,719 for Child Health and Wellness, which includes programs such as obesity prevention, asthma programs and oral health services
• $3.728 million for the Maternal and Child Health Services initiative
• $1.014 million for the Managed Care Consumer Assistance Program
• $554,423 for Reproductive and Sexual Health Services

Homeless and Housing Services

• $1.35 million for Children and Families in the NYC Homeless System
• $820,000 for the Citywide Homeless Prevention Fund
• $1.5 million Guaranteed Income Pilot Program
• $3.65 million for Community Housing Preservation Strategies
• $1.5 million for the Community Land Trust
• $1 million for Estate Planning and Resolution
• $450,000 for Financial Empowerment for NYC’s Renters
• $4.15 million for the Foreclosure Prevention Program
• $1.8 million for the Home Loan Program
• $650,000 for Housing Court Answers
• $300,000 for the Housing Information Project
• $3.75 million for Stabilizing NYC, a citywide coalition to prevent the loss of affordable housing

Immigrant Services

• $3.35 million for CUNY Citizenship NOW! Program
• $4.4 million Legal Services for Low-Income Immigrants
• $16.6 million for the New York Immigrant Family Unity Project
• $3.982 million for the Unaccompanied Minors and Families Initiative
• $2.4 million for Immigrant Health Initiative
• $2.6 million for Immigrant Opportunities Initiative
• $700,000 for Key to the City

Legal Services

• $3.0 million for Family Advocacy and Guardianship Support
• $485,000 for Legal Information for Families Today (LIFT)
• $5.8 million for Legal Services for Low-income New Yorkers, which includes citywide legal services and the SSI advocacy project
• $3.455 million for Legal Services for the Working Poor

Libraries

• $4.3 million n FY25 for Brooklyn Public Library
• $5.8 million in FY25 for the New York Public Library
• $4.3 million in FY25 for the Queens Public Library
• $1 million in FY25 for the New York Research Library

Mental Health Services

• $3.26 million for the Autism Awareness Initiative
• $1.56 million for the Children Under 5 Initiative, which funds community-based mental health services for children under 5
• $3.425 million for the Court-Involved Youth Mental Health Initiative
• $2.23 million for Developmental, Psychological and Behavioral Health Services
• $1.2 million for the LGBTQ Youth All-Borough Mental Health Initiative
• $3.66 million for Mental Health Services for Vulnerable Populations, which included the Samaritans Suicide Prevention hotline
• $3.08 million for Opioid Prevention and Treatment

Parks and Recreation

• $5.4 million for Parks Equity Initiative

Public Safety

• $720,000 for Arts as a Catalyst for Change
• $3.77 million for the Crisis Management System (distributed among DOE, DOP, DYCD, and HHC)
• $125,000 for Cure Hate
• $1.225 million for the Hate Crimes Prevention Initiative

Young Women’s Initiative

• $973,126 for a Dedicated Contraceptive Fund
• $250,000 for HRA Teen RAPP
• $530,000 for an Initiative for Immigrant Survivors of Domestic Violence
• $350,000 for the Prevent Sexual Assault (PSA) Initiative for Young Adults
• $174,000 for Step in and Stop it Initiative to Address Bystander Intervention
• $714,500 for Work-Based Learning Internships
• $1.096 million for Wrap-Around Supports for Transitional-Aged Foster Youth
• $1.74 million for Young Women’s Leadership Development 

Youth Services

• $8.2 million for the Afterschool Enrichment Initiative
• $1.2 million for Big Brothers and Big Sister of New York City
• $500,000 for Civic Education in New York City Schools
• $1.87 million for COMPASS elementary after-school programs
• $1.472 million for Sports Training and Role Models for Success Initiative (STARS)
• $1.4 million for Youth Build Project Initiative
• $17.34 million for Cultural After-School Adventure (CASA)
• $1 million for Citywide Young Adult Entrepreneurship Program Initiative