Additional Estimates of the Cost of Proposed Laws and Updates to Budget Deadlines
Why is this proposal on the ballot?
The 2024 Charter Revision Commission reviewed the New York City Charter to ensure its efficiency and responsiveness to all New Yorkers, held public hearings and conducted outreach to solicit public input, and offered the following suggested changes.
What this proposal says:
This proposal would amend the City Charter to require fiscal analysis from the Council before hearings and votes on laws, authorize fiscal analysis from the Mayor, and update budget deadlines.
Voting “Yes” would amend the City Charter to require additional fiscal analysis prior to hearings and votes on local laws, and update budget deadlines. Voting “No” leaves laws unchanged.
What this proposal means:
The City Council provides cost estimates of proposed laws before voting on them. The proposal would give the Mayor’s Office of Management and Budget the opportunity to provide its own cost estimates for proposed laws and require the Council to publish their cost estimates before public hearings on proposed laws. This proposal would also require the Council to formally notify the Mayor’s office before holding public hearings or votes on proposed laws. Lastly, this proposal would extend the deadline for certain budget reports in the first year of a new Mayoral administration, and permanently extend the deadline for the Mayor to publish their annual City budget.
If this Proposal Passes:
It would establish a new role for the Mayor in assessing the cost of laws before they are passed and require that cost estimates from the Council and Mayor are available before proposed laws are considered at public hearings. It would also give the Mayor some more time to prepare the City’s annual budget before it is presented to the City Council.
Summary of Statements in Support of Ballot Proposal 3:
The CFB received 2 public comments supporting proposal 3. The comments express support for requiring additional fiscal analysis before hearings and votes on local laws. The CFB received no comments from organizations.
Summary of Statements in Opposition of Ballot Proposal 3:
The CFB received 13 public comments opposing proposal 3. The comments cite concerns that this proposal is the result of a politically motivated and rushed Charter Revision Commission and that the passage of Proposal 3 would make the City government less responsive to New Yorkers needs and that it could impose redundant review processes for local laws and may cause delays in lawmaking generally. The CFB received comments from the following organizations:
- City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams
- Legal Aid Society
- New Yorkers Defending Democracy
- Surveillance Technology Oversight Project
- The Jails Action Coalition and HALT Solitary Campaign (JAC/HALT)
