New York City Independent Budget Office

REPORT: While many city services have weathered recent budget cuts, subsidies for the city’s three library systems have so far been largely unaffected. In 2016, the Mayor and City Council provided the libraries with a substantial hike in their subsidies with the aim of increasing public access and use of the more than 200 library branches across the five boroughs. How well have those goals been met? https://bit.ly/30iM8H1

NYC BY THE NUMBERS: Small businesses are an essential part of the New York City economy. Which industries have the most small businessesand how much do they pay on average? Find out here: https://bit.ly/3j5QcSE

NYC BY THE NUMBERS: Following an investigation into health care in the city’s jails, in 2015 Mayor de Blasio shifted responsibility for providing health care in the jails from private firms to the city’s public hospital system. Despite a shrinking jail population, the cost of care has increased. How much and why? https://bit.ly/30d1ZHp

LETTER: The city's public schools are set to open next week with more than the usual number of teachers and the need for many safeguards. Council Member Mark Treyger asked us what this will cost. We provide an estimate here: https://bit.ly/33z54Cr Photo: Flikr/Brandon Ungar https://bit.ly/3iAlIrs

REPORT: There are many complications to reopening schools in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic. One of them is the basic question of whether the city’s public schools have enough physical capacity to accommodate students and teachers while social distancing. We take a look at this among the questions about school reopening asked of us by Council Member Mark Treyger. See the results: https://bit.ly/3gOKWk0

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: See all of IBO's August 2020 reports here: https://bit.ly/3gKtUDX

NYC BY THE NUMBERS: New York City’s budget includes more than $450 million this year to fund the offices of the city’s five District Attorneys and Special Narcotics Prosecutor. In the 1980s and 1990s, as the number of arrests climbed staffing at these offices grew. But as arrests fell sharply over the past decade, did staffing at these agencies also decline? https://bit.ly/31uQtYT Photo: Flikr/Wally Gobetz https://bit.ly/3hITjzf

NYC BY THE NUMBERS: Was $1 billion cut from the New York Police Department budget for this year? And how much of that cut continues next year and beyond in the city’s financial plan? https://bit.ly/2YbpOOq

REPORT: The city’s public hospital system, NYC Health + Hospitals, was regaining fiscal stability. Then the Covid-19 pandemic arrived. There may be enough federal aid to help Health + Hospitals recover, at least in the near term. How much can the system expect to receive and what are the fiscal challenges ahead? https://bit.ly/3kU4JBR Photo: Flikr/David Carroll https://bit.ly/2YbcEkN

NYC BY THE NUMBERS: With City Hall preparing for layoffs due to the pandemic-related recession, IBO looked at the rise and fall in city staff before, during, and after the Great Recession. Which agencies had the deepest cuts? Which grew the most in recent years? See the numbers: https://bit.ly/30Sl0PV

NYC BY TNE NUMBERS: When New York City went on a pandemic pause in the spring, work at some 35,000 construction sites came to a halt. But not for long. How many sites restarted workand whyduring the pause? https://bit.ly/3adHPk0 Photo: Flikr/John St John https://bit.ly/3kJkyvo

ICYMI: See all of IBO's July Reports here: https://bit.ly/3fq3XJ8

REPORT: With hunger and food insecurity rising amid the Covid-19 pandemic, the de Blasio Administration launched the Grab & Go food program at many city schools, where anyone in need could pick up free meals. But were the sites located in the areas with the greatest economic need? https://bit.ly/318G5on