Reports

Local government sales tax collections grew by 21.1%, or $901 million, in the first quarter of 2022 compared to the same period last year. Collections for the three-month period totaled nearly $5.2 billion, with growth at least partially driven by inflation, which hit a 40-year-high in March.

Regional Table [.xlsx]

Despite unprecedented federal aid, the MTA is still faced with determining how it will close its budget gaps in the future. If riders do not return faster than the MTA projects, or if new sources of revenue are not found, rising debt payments could force the MTA to close future budget gaps through service cuts, greater than planned fare hikes, or delays to critical capital projects.

Accelerating consumer price increases beginning in the spring of 2021 have led to the highest inflation rate in 30 years in the New York City Metropolitan Area. Consumer spending habits have already shifted, and persistent inflation on essential household items, such as housing and food, will limit purchasing power and squeeze household budgets absent stronger wage growth.

Median earnings for full-time working women in New York were 86 cents for every dollar earned by men in 2019, an annual wage gap of $8,821, as reported by the U.S. Census Bureau. While New York women earn more dollars relative to men than in most other states, women's median earnings continue to lag across occupational groups and other categories.

The average bonus paid to employees in New York City’s securities industry for 2021 grew to $257,500, a 20% jump over the previous year’s record high. The estimated bonuses paid out on Wall Street are higher than the city’s most recent 15.7% growth projection, and should help the city exceed its expected revenue from income taxes.

The February Plan benefits from New York City’s continued economic resilience in 2021 and includes more proactive planning to fund budget risks and generate savings. The City is expecting to generate a surplus of $3.7 billion in fiscal year 2022 due to federal aid, better-than-projected tax revenues, and planned savings. The surplus could reach at least $4.5 billion if revenue and spending remain on their current tracks.

Historic relief funds from the federal government, provided in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, boosted New York’s per capita balance of payments from Washington from second-to-last in federal fiscal year 2019 to 40th in 2020. During this period, New York received $1.59 for every tax dollar paid to Washington, an increase from 91 cents from the prior year, but still below the national average of $1.92. 

The COVID-19 pandemic hit New York City particularly hard, causing massive job losses at major employers such as restaurants, hotels and retail stores. These dashboards follow a series of reports released over the past two years tracking economic data and the effect of the pandemic on these critical sectors and will help identify areas of weakness as well as positive developments.

Arts, Entertainment and Recreation | Construction | Office | Restaurant | Retail | Securities | Tourism | Transportation and Warehousing

The number of jobs influenced by the green economy in New York exceeded one million in 2019 and 2020. New York’s efforts to promote sustainability not only encourage the creation of new jobs related to clean energy and energy efficiency, but they can also affect employment more broadly, requiring new skills in existing occupations and increasing demand for others. The State must fund educational and workforce development programs to grow the green economy and help bolster New York’s pandemic recovery.

Unrestricted State aid for cities, towns and villages has remained flat or declined over the last decade. When adjusted for inflation, unrestricted aid to local governments has actually declined by 24% since 2011, when the State’s real property tax cap was enacted.

Local government sales tax collections totaling $19.6 billion increased by 19.1%, or $3.1 billion, in 2021 compared to last year. This was the highest annual increase on record after a historic low in 2020 when local sales tax collections declined by 10%. Annual growth in 2019 was 4.7%.

Regional Table [.xlsx]

Although the Division of the Budget forecasts in the State Fiscal Year 2022-23 Executive Budget that the budget will remain in balance for the next five years, the direction of the pandemic, inflation, and supply chain issues all remain risks to the state’s economic recovery and financial plan. The budget also proposes billions of dollars in spending that would bypass critical oversight if enacted.

Update: Supplemental Report on the State Fiscal Year 2022-23 Executive Budget (As Amended by the Governor)

The pandemic impacted the delivery of some core public health services as agency resources were shifted to the COVID-19 response and fewer people sought health care. Responding to the mental health needs of people impacted by the pandemic, the Mayor launched Mental Health for All, a comprehensive website and public education campaign that coordinates mental health resources across City agencies, including the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.

Before the pandemic, the shelter population had been growing at a somewhat steady rate, peaking at 61,110 people in January 2019. Since February 2020, just before the start of the pandemic, however, those numbers had been on the decline, before rising slightly in recent months. The decline was due in part to the federal and state eviction moratoriums that were issued during the pandemic.

Consistent with the citywide trend from February 2020 to October 2021, the NYPD experienced a decline in uniformed staffing levels (of 6 percent, more than 2,000 employees) from February 2020 to September 2021, due to relatively higher rates of officers retiring or otherwise leaving the force.

The City experienced significant growth in its fulltime workforce in the years prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, much of which was driven by new or expanded services. The pandemic, and the City’s efforts to manage the budgetary implications of its impact, have led to a decline in staffing which has undone much of this growth.

The DSNY experienced a surge in medical leave during the first few weeks of the pandemic and has continued to experience spikes in employee unavailability. This factor, coupled with a FY 2021 hiring freeze which reduced uniformed staff by 9 percent (nearly 700 employees) between February 2020 and June 2021, has resulted in higher overtime costs.

Extraordinary emergency federal aid eliminated the most serious potential fiscal impacts of the pandemic. However, school closures, the necessary integration of remote learning, and the inability to provide in-person supplemental services to students have disrupted two consecutive school years, with significant negative impacts on student learning outcomes.

New York City Health + Hospitals initially experienced some challenges with staffing and supply shortages and capacity limitations. As the pandemic unfolded, the agency assumed a significant role in planning for and responding to New York City’s public health emergency, launched the largest test and trace program in the country and implemented a vaccine program. The agency managed financially early in the pandemic due to the receipt of federal COVID-19 relief funding but, with the rise of new variants and subsequent increase in hospitalizations, costs continue to grow.

NYCHA, like many landlords nationally, faced a significant decline in rent collections due to severe economic disruption and employment losses experienced as a result of the pandemic. The Authority has also seen increased delays in resolution times for non-emergency service requests, resulting from changes to work order guidelines on in-unit repairs during the pandemic.