Errol Louis: Good evening. Welcome to Inside City Hall for Wednesday, January 28th, 2026. I'm Errol Louis. Mayor Zohran Mamdani today painted a dire picture of the City's finances, blaming his predecessor, Eric Adams, for mismanaging the city budget. As his administration seeks to navigate a $12 billion shortfall over the next two years, the mayor made his case for raising taxes on corporations and the city's wealthiest earners, despite objections from Governor Hochul.
Earlier this afternoon, I sat down with the mayor for the first time since taking office for an exclusive in-depth discussion about the city budget and the rising national tensions over ICE, over his relationships with President Trump and Governor Hochul, and much more. Here's the first part of our conversation.
You announced today that the City's finances under Mayor Adams were "Mismanaged at every turn." You're calling it ABC, the Adams Budget Crisis. What was an example of something that was mismanaged?
Mayor Zohran Mamdani: I think one of the key examples, Errol, was the continued lack of budgeting for costs of programs that the city had. When you're talking about shelter costs or you're talking about cash assistance, you would sometimes see almost half of the program's cost kept off the books.
And what this would do is hide the true scale of cost and the actual scale of crisis from New Yorkers. And so, today, what we wanted to do is be very upfront and direct about the decisions that brought us to this point, where we now have a fiscal gap of about $12 billion, larger than even the Great Recession.
Louis: Adams himself had an unfair budget crisis of his own, right? I mean, the flood of migrants arrived. There wasn't really a lot of help coming from Washington, D.C. Do you feel like you're in a similar position?
Mayor Mamdani: Well, I think the difficult thing here is we all could have seen that these costs would be greater than what they were budgeted for. In fact, many did see. Many journalists saw it. Many comptrollers saw it. Brad Lander, Mark Levine, Tom DiNapoli, city and state level. And yet every time that that $12 billion estimate came, the city would say, actually, it's not that bad.
Actually, it's just more like this. And we wanted to be honest, that as soon as we peeked under the hood, we knew it was going to be tough. What we found, however, is very much in line with these comptrollers' estimates.
Louis: When we hear that the city had an $8 billion in reserves, is the problem you're talking about net of that $8 billion? Does that include it, or does that offset some of the $12 [billion] that you're talking about?
Mayor Mamdani: The problem we're talking about is this is structural. We're looking at an issue that is only going to grow if we do not actually address it at the source. And one of the sources is the city's relationship with the state, where the city contributes 54.5 percent of the state's revenues but only receives 40.5 percent in return.
The other is that we need to raise taxes on the wealthiest New Yorkers and the most profitable corporations. These are two key parts of what we have to do to right this ship, not just for the current fiscal year and the next fiscal year, but to make sure that we're on a firm financial footing.
Louis: I definitely want to ask you about that, but wasn't part of the problem that all of the usual watchdogs were actually seeking higher office? I mean, the speaker of the Council was running for mayor. The sitting comptroller was running for mayor. The chair of the finance committee was running for comptroller. Everybody had an incentive to kind of sweep this off to the side, and that's more or less what happened.
Mayor Mamdani: Well, I think you actually found that the former comptroller did issue this same warning of a $12 billion gap, and that it wasn't for a lack of knowledge, but it was for a lack of admission from City Hall. And that's what's so difficult, is that we have seen that even when this gap was growing, the prior administration made the decision to add close to $2 billion in additional expenses.
And when you choose to do that amidst this widening chasm between what you are receiving and what you have to pay out, you are creating what is effectively a poison chalice for the next administration. And now, we did not create this crisis, but we are going to resolve it. The first way that we do so is to be honest with New Yorkers about what we're actually looking at.
Louis: To the extent that there was poor budgeting going on under the prior administration, I mean, the remedy on one level is to vote them out, which is pretty much what happened, right? That's why you're the mayor now.
Mayor Mamdani: Yes. Here I am. And I think the issue is that many New Yorkers, myself included, we assumed that there was going to be some kind of a fiscal deficit. The issue is that the scale of this deficit dwarfs the Great Recession. That's what we're talking about at hand. And what's so hard to come to terms with, is that we had not seen any indications from the prior administration, that they were looking at this on the other side. This was something that they kept pushing off until it wasn't their problem. It is, however, New York City's, and we're going to resolve it.
Louis: You mentioned Governor Cuomo in your press conference today, shortchanging the city. But in at least one of his budgets, you were in the legislature and voted for his budget, right, in 2021?
Mayor Mamdani: In 2021, we actually overcame his objections to raise taxes on the wealthiest and raise about $4 billion in new revenue. Now, that was one of the many things we were able to achieve that year over his objections. And what we saw is that if we had in fact had someone with a vision of helping the city, we would not have been looking at the 10 years prior to that that we did with then-Governor Cuomo.
Because I think this was someone who sought at almost every opportunity to shift the cost burden from the state to the city. Because before he was governor, it wasn't that wide of a chasm between what the city was contributing and receiving. The chasm is a direct result of his leadership of the state.
Louis: Isn't some of that a result of the greater economic health of the city as compared to the rest of the state?
Mayor Mamdani: I think, frankly, the city's economic health has been a generator for the state and also for the country. However, what we saw, it looked more like a politics motivated by a cruelty towards the city as opposed to anything else.
Louis: Well, I'm not going to defend Andrew Cuomo. I'm sure he'll get to that and you may hear from him at some point. But I'm mindful of the fact that every year when they talk about the poorest cities in the country, several of them are upstate New York cities. You know, you go to Syracuse, you go to parts of Rochester. They're really hurting up there. You know, places like Newburgh, you know, even in some of the close-in suburbs. To the extent that New York City has the resources, shouldn't some of that go to make life a little easier for some of them?
Mayor Mamdani: I think there's no question that we should be fighting for needy New Yorkers across the state. The issue, however, is the cost shifting, the cost burden, all of the politics behind all of this. Nothing had to do with actually helping anyone in need. It had to do with hurting the city and extracting wealth from these five boroughs. And what we want to do is to ensure that no longer are we simply the most expensive city in the United States of America or the wealthiest in the wealthiest country in the world. We also have to address the fact that one in four are living in poverty. That continues to be the case even amidst this great wealth.
Louis: Now, how do you intend to convince Albany? And I don't mean just the governor, but also the legislature. As a former legislator, you know that there's an upstate-downstate connection. If you start saying, "Well, we've paid too much for this" - upstate legislators are going to take note of this, and they're going to not only not vote for tax increases, but they may decide to punish you in other ways, like decide that mayoral control needs to be shortened to one year or two.
Mayor Mamdani: Well, I think, honestly, having a direct and frank conversation is something that is often missing in the way that City Hall travels to Albany. And I'm going to be very open about the scale of this crisis and also the fact that the solutions that we are proposing-the income tax, for example, it's about an income tax not on the entire state, but right here in New York City. It's about raising the personal income tax by 2 percent on the top 1 percent. That's New Yorkers who make more than a million dollars a year.
I actually had a New Yorker who turned to me and self-identified as a millionaire and said, "Is it true you want to tax millionaires?" I said, "It is true." They said, "Well, I'm going to leave." I said, "I don't think you are." They said, "Why not?" I said, "Because it's only a 2 percent increase. It's $20,000 on an income of a million dollars." And when they realized what it was, they said, "That's probably right."
Louis: They said I spend more than that on a weekend, right, at a party.
Mayor Mamdani: But I think there's so much of this kind of this specter of capital flight that is not actually tied to the amounts that we are speaking about, the proposals that we actually have on hand.
Louis: Do you see yourself as part of a tradition? Because I could give you all of the history. It all happened in this building where John Lindsay blamed his predecessor Wagner and then Beame blamed Lindsay for giving him a tough set of budgets that he didn't properly account for. And certainly Koch did that with Beame and on and on and on throughout the decades.
Mayor Mamdani: Well, I think it's just about being honest with New Yorkers. And I think that we are here, it's day 28 of the administration, and we are inheriting a $12 billion fiscal debt. And I would be honest if we had made expenses ourselves that we had not anticipated. But it's 28 days. You can't spend $12 billion in 28 days. So, what we're finding under the hood, it is staggering. And I think usually, especially as someone who has been a legislator, we would look at comptroller reports as perhaps one side of a larger conversation. It's rare that the gap between the executive and the comptroller is so great. And then when you look under the hood, you find it's in fact nowhere near where the executive has said it's entirely where the controller has said. And that's just at this point.
Louis: Okay, so you and the Council have some tough choices to make. On the campaign trail, you pointed to things like vacancies in the Corporation Counsel Office, and said that you were going to hire more lawyers to help New Yorkers avoid eviction, that kind of thing. Are things like that going to maybe not happen? Are they on the chopping block?
Mayor Mamdani: I think these are some of the conversations we're going to have over the next few weeks as we prepare the preliminary budget on February 17th. One thing I will say, however, is that part of what has driven this deficit has also been the lack of staffing to even handle judgments and claims on behalf of the city.
We've seen on and on that that number has ballooned, especially as those departments are not able to keep up with the number that they're facing. So many of these things are actually intertangled, but we're going to be looking more and more into all of it.
Louis: The Independent Budget Office says this every year, that for every person you hire for the finance division, meaning the people who collect taxes, they more than pay for their salary several times over. You promised 1 percent of the budget would go to Parks. Is that something you're going to stick to?
Mayor Mamdani: I mean, these are all the commitments that we intend to reach. The question is at what timetable and what timeline, given the scale of this crisis?
Louis: Something you and I have talked about before is property taxes. And this is something where you don't have to go to Albany. You don't really have to talk to anybody except the folks on the other side of the building and the City Council.
I'm mindful that when Mayor Bloomberg came in shortly after 9/11, they got an 18.5 percent increase in property taxes, a massive, massive increase, because it was understood that it was an extraordinary time, that required an extraordinary response. Is that something you would consider?
Mayor Mamdani: I think that putting the bill of this fiscal crisis on the backs of middle-class New Yorkers, a crisis that they had nothing to do [with], that is not where we want to go. What we are talking about instead is not just changing the city and the state's relationship, but talking about taxing New Yorkers who make a million dollars or more a year.
And I've spent quite some time over the course of the campaign and, you know, even in conversations that we've had about the fact that the property tax system itself is a broken one. It needs to be reformed, and that's also something that I care very deeply about.
Louis: Are you planning a campaign to maybe pressure the legislature into raising income taxes? I'm mindful of Bill de Blasio going up there. He had a bunch of rallies. It seems ultimately to have, if not backfired, at least not worked. They didn't give him the increase that he was looking for, and it really sort of deepened the animosity from Governor Cuomo.
Mayor Mamdani: I think I'm going to be just open and honest and direct, because I think for far too long when you are in the legislature, you don't get a full picture of what the city is actually facing. And we're going to be very clear. Today, we announced that it was ABC, as you said, Adams' Budget Crisis. Soon, we'll announce an updated figure given the increased revenue that we might expect, the better-than-expected Wall Street bonuses.
What is the actual gap over the course of these two fiscal years? And then on the 17th, we're going to have the preliminary budget itself. And then in between all of this, I'll be going up to Albany for what is affectionately known as Tin Cup Day, and making very clear this is the scale of the crisis at hand. This is where we need Albany's partnership to actually resolve it.
[Commercial Break.]
Louis: Welcome back to Inside City Hall. During my exclusive wide-ranging discussion with Mayor Mamdani earlier today, we spoke about how he is navigating his differences with President Donald Trump, how he is protecting New Yorkers from aggressive federal immigration raids, and how he plans to handle Rikers Island. Here's the final part of our conversation.
You identified Governor Cuomo as part of the problem. You didn't say much about Governor Hochul, who's been there for, you know, over four years now. What role does she play in this? Have her budgets been fair to the city?
Mayor Mamdani: I think Governor Hochul has been a marked departure from Governor Cuomo's approach, and I've been heartened by the relationship that we've been developing and building, and frankly, also exhibiting on day eight of our administration, the partnership that yielded more than a billion dollars in state funding for delivering universal child care right here in New York City.
Louis: Okay, let's switch topics. President Trump said yesterday that he'd love for you to be "Successful as mayor." Is there anything you'd like to see him do or not do to help with that success?
Mayor Mamdani: Well, I think the thing that the president also shared with me, as well as with the press corps within the Oval Office, was that the better New York City does, the happier he is. And so I make very clear what impacts federal policy [has] on our city. Now, when we're talking about ICE raids, for example, I've said to him directly, [they] are cruel and inhumane. They do nothing to serve the interest of public safety.
When we're talking about some of these proposals to withhold funding, that would devastate New York City. Now, when the president is talking about a cap on credit card interest fees, I think that would actually be to the benefit of many working New Yorkers.
Louis: When you say something that [like] his deportation campaign is cruel and inhumane, what does he say to something like that?
Mayor Mamdani: Well, I think we had an honest and firm disagreement on it, and I made [it] very clear that the city cares deeply about public safety, because usually that is the justification for all of these kinds of actions. And what I said is that to deliver that public safety, we have the NYPD. We do not need ICE to be operating here within New York City, creating a climate of terror and fear amongst New Yorkers, no matter their immigration status.
And I think this is what it comes back to, is that I hear from so many people in our city who tell me that they are fearful of even leaving their home because of what they see ICE doing on a daily basis. We're talking about a federal agency that is pulling people out of their cars, out of their homes, out of their lives, that is killing people in this country, and you're asking people to still believe in [the] government. It is a very difficult mismatch.
Louis: Are you afraid that something like that could happen here in New York City?
Mayor Mamdani: I'm doing everything I can to ensure that it never does. And I think that it is a fear that many New Yorkers have, and my job is to show them that I'm the mayor of this entire city, which includes more than three million New Yorkers who are immigrants, myself included.
Louis: Are you planning any executive orders, or have you given instructions to the NYPD and other places to try and head off these kinds of problems?
Mayor Mamdani: I've been very clear across City government that we want to fully follow the law, especially when it comes to our sanctuary city policies. And I wish that wasn't worthy of announcing to you, but frankly, there is a contrast between the prior administration and our own when it comes to the willingness to tell New Yorkers of their own rights. That means letting parents know that when their children go into a school, ICE agents will not be allowed into that school unless they provide a judicial warrant signed by a judge.
And so, knowing your rights is something that we want to make sure that every New Yorker does, but then also making clear that we're not here to assist ICE in their operations. We are here to conduct our own operations in full compliance with our own laws.
Louis: The mayor of Minneapolis, and I believe the governor as well out in Minnesota, told the public they suggested that they film and witness what ICE is up to. Do you feel that way?
Mayor Mamdani: I've said in a video that I shared with New Yorkers that you can and should film ICE and that this is part of what it means to exercise your full constitutional rights.
Louis: Let me ask you about your Corrections commissioner, who I don't think you've announced one just yet, but we have the appointment of a de facto receiver that's going to basically oversee Rikers Island for the foreseeable future. I imagine it would take away a lot of discretion from whoever that commissioner is. How are you planning to handle that?
Mayor Mamdani: Well, I think this is an opportunity, frankly, for us to enter into a new chapter. And I look forward to working closely with that appointment because what it shows us is that this is a chance for us to end not just the dysfunction and disorder, but frankly, the depravity that we've seen. I mean, the last time I went to Rikers Island, a colleague of mine was there with me and an incarcerated New Yorker tried to take their own life in front of her. That's what we are talking about when we think about the despair on that island. We have to do everything we can to close Rikers. And I think that this is one pathway towards that.
Louis: Do you have a short list for a commissioner?
Mayor Mamdani: Those are interviews that we're conducting.
Louis: I want to ask you about the nurses strike. You stood on the picket line with striking nurses. Isn't the mayor supposed to be neutral in a case like this? Because I think you subsequently said you want to offer City Hall as a place for negotiations to take place. But nobody's going to take you up on that because you're already sort of picking sides.
Mayor Mamdani: Look, I've always said that I encourage everyone to remain at the bargaining table and to bring a swift resolution to the strike. And I also want to be very clear and direct with New Yorkers that when we're talking about nurses, their value should never be in question. And this is a city where too many working people have been pushed out of it. I can tell you there's so many times- I'm getting an allergy shot once a week for seven months, so that we can have a cat or cats or we'll figure out how many.
And I went into the elevator for the doctor's office and there was a woman across from me who worked there and she let out a deep sigh and I asked her, "How's your day going?" She said, "It's a long day and I still have to get back to Connecticut." And I said, "What do you mean?" She said, "That's where I live. That's the only place I can afford." And there's just too many nurses who you ask them how long is your commute, they tell you an hour distance, that is beyond the state. That's what we've done here.
Louis: Right. Later this year, the contract with DC 37 is going to be up. Are you prepared for people picketing and you're the boss and they're asking you for better working conditions and pay?
Mayor Mamdani: I am. I am prepared. And I think that the workers of DC 37 do incredible work across the city and far too often it's not recognized. And I can tell you myself, I've just seen over the 20-odd days that I've been the mayor, so much of what keeps the city running are the workers whose names most New Yorkers never know.
Louis: Do you think they deserve a raise?
Mayor Mamdani: I think that we're going to get into negotiations.
Louis: Okay. I mean, you're saying on the one at the same time, we've got a $12billion hole. We're going to have to fill this. We're going to have to figure this out. But we value these workers, and they're going to be wondering if they're going to get what they're looking for.
Mayor Mamdani: We do value them. I think what this comes back to is with a gap this large, there is a temptation. Oftentimes, I'm asked, you know, what services we're willing to cut. And what I talk about is that too often it's working people that are offered as the first answer to a crisis they were never created. Our first answer has to be, how do we get our city back on firm financial footing?
And how do we do so by taxing those with the most a little bit more, changing our relationship with the state a little bit more, bringing it to a place where working people can afford to live here. Because I really do believe that DC 37 workers, workers across this entire city, they're giving everything they can to the city. And yet, too often they're not even given a handshake in return.
Louis: There are times when wealthy New Yorkers, especially the business community, have said, we'll pay more in taxes, but we want a lockbox. We want some efficiency. We want to know where this money is going to go. Is that the kind of conversation you're willing to have?
Mayor Mamdani: I think that's fair. I think that it is absolutely fair for us to also be looking for savings and efficiencies. And what I mean by that is taking a hard look at every dollar the city spends and interrogating whether it's an effective use of that funding, because we are not just pursuing increased taxes on the wealthiest, not just pursuing a different relationship with the state, but also looking at City government itself and making sure every dollar is one that's well spent.
Louis: A little Council business before we go. The City Council is poised to override some of Mayor Adams' final vetoes, but it reportedly is going to keep three of them in place, including one that would have mandated, well, it's called the COPA bill, that would have mandated the selling of certain kinds of properties or right of first refusal to nonprofit agencies. What is your position on that?
Mayor Mamdani: I support the COPA bill. And that's a piece of legislation that I think is one that is part of how we address this housing crisis. And I think it's very much in line with what the city needs to be doing.
Louis: And then finally, before I let you go, there was talk about there being a note left for you by your predecessor. Did Mayor Adams leave you a note?
Mayor Mamdani: I wish [he] would have told me where it was.
Louis: No note?
Mayor Mamdani: Nothing.
Louis: No note.
Mayor Mamdani: If you see him, ask him. No note. No ghosts. Not yet.
Louis: No cryptocurrency?
Mayor Mamdani: Definitely no crypto.
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