What's The Data Point

2,500 is the number of uniformed officers NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch moved from behind desks to patrolling NYC streets since this past summer. The move helped drive down the number of serious crimes committed, though fear remains high: last winter before this effort, CBC surveyed New Yorkers and discovered that 42% felt their neighborhood is safe, and only 34% rated the City's quality of life as excellent or good. These pose a real vulnerability to NYC long-term economic health and appeal to businesses and residents. In this episode, CBC Chair Marissa Shorenstein sits down with Commissioner Tisch to dig into her policy prescriptions for public safety, quality of life, the federal government and more (plus some of her accomplishments as the former Sanitation Commissioner).

34% is the share of New Yorkers who now rate the city’s quality of life excellent or good in CBC's recent citywide survey "Straight from New Yorkers." This is substantially lower than the 51% who rated quality of life positively in 2017. At the same time, the competition with other places to attract and keep residents and business is fierce. In this episode, CBC brought together leaders from New York's business, labor, nonprofit, and real estate sectors to discuss the ways in which we can come together to make New York an affordable, competitive, and vibrant City. -Vincent Alvarez, President of The New York City Central Labor Council, AFL-CIO -Wayne Ho, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Chinese-American Planning Council -Jim Whelan, President of the Real Estate Board of New York -Kathryn Wylde, President and CEO of the Partnership for New York City -Moderated by CBC Vice Chair William Floyd, Senior Director, U.S. State and Local Government Affairs and Public Policy at Google You can learn more

48,000 is the number of new homes to be created when we add together the 40,000 that should be enabled by 5 neighborhood rezonings and the current proposed plan to redevelop the Brooklyn Marine Terminal. New York must dramatically increase housing production if it is going reduce its affordability problems and be in a strong competitive position to retain and attract residents, grow businesses, and create jobs. What else is New York City doing to boost housing production? How is the City working to attract businesses and grow high wage jobs? At a recent CBC event, Andrew Kimball, President and CEO of New York City’s Economic Development Corporation, and Dan Garodnick, Director of the Department of City Planning and Chair of the City Planning Commission, joined CBC President Andrew Rein to answer these questions and more.

$280 billion is the total number of dollars held by New York City’s five pension funds over which the City Comptroller is custodian and investment adviser. The Comptroller plays a critical role in the City’s fiscal health, integrity, and accountability. In June, New Yorkers will head to the polls to choose who they want to guide them through the economically uncertain times ahead. Today's episode features a live debate between the two leading Comptroller candidates: Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine and City Councilmember Justin Brannan.

$15 billion is the amount congestion pricing is expected to yield for MTA infrastructure investment—to bring trains, tracks, yards, and signals to a state of good repair, increase accessibility, and expand subway service. As congestion pricing is challenged by the Trump administration, this speaks to the larger question of the fiscal and regulatory relationship between the federal government and New York. In this episode we are joined by Polly Trottenberg, who served most recently as Deputy Secretary of the U.S. Department of Transportation and before that as Commissioner of the NYC Department of Transportation, as well as a board member of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Polly brings her experience at both the federal and City level to unpack the future of transportation policy and funding.

$252 billion is the size of Governor Kathy Hochul’s New York State Executive Budget for Fiscal Year 2026. It's a full $100 billion more than ten years ago. New York State and its localities are already #1 in taxes and #2 in spending nationwide. On today’s episode we talk with New York State’s Budget Director Blake G. Washington, to discuss whether taxes are too high, if New York should try to restrain spending growth, how the State is preparing for possible changes to federal aid, and more on affordability, education, Medicaid, and the MTA.

$35 billion is how much of the MTA's 5-year capital plan remains unfunded. Investing in the MTA’s crumbling infrastructure is one of the most important decisions Albany will make this year; New York's economy, quality of life, and the region's competitiveness depend on it. At a recent CBC event, MTA Chair and CEO Janno Lieber sat down with CBC president Andrew Rein to talk about keeping the trains running on time, the potential risk to congestion pricing, funding the MTA’s capital plan, reducing fare evasion, MTA efficiency, relaxing discovery rules, and the public’s concern for their safety.

$16 billion is the estimated cost to build the new rail tunnel under the Hudson River. Decades of delays and funding spats ultimately led to the creation of the Gateway Development Commission, the bi-state entity responsible for making the tunnel a reality. Joining the podcast is Alicia Glen, co-Chair of the Gateway Development Commission, founder and managing principal of MSquared, and current CBC Trustee. Glen is also the chair of the Trust for Governors Island, and the former Deputy Mayor for Housing and Economic Development during the de Blasio Administration.

80,000. That’s the number of additional new housing units the Adams’ Administration hopes will be developed over the next 15 years thanks to the City of Yes for Housing Opportunity. The City Council votes this week on Mayor Eric Adams’ plan to tackle the housing crisis. However, that is not all that the Administration is focused on. Needed Infrastructure investment, improved contracting, implementing the now-charter mandated true cost of living, and so much more. In this new episode of WTDP, we chat with First Deputy Mayor Maria Torres-Springer and Deputy Mayors Meera Joshi and Ana Almanzar who work as a part of the City Hall team to address these issues and more!

10 and 15 are the districts represented by New York Congressman Dan Goldman and Congressman Ritchie Torres. With a newly elected President and Congress, changes in federal policy, funding, and regulation will affect New York State and New York City. So, what are the opportunities and challenges ahead? Where can New York make common cause with others, and how can our congressional delegation work across the aisle? Listen as Congressmen Goldman and Torres help us understand more about what lies ahead.

97 - that's the number of days between this conversation and the release of the Governor's Fiscal Year 2026 Executive Budget. But how the State will close its $16 billion structural gap isn't the only important issue facing New York State. How will the State buttress resiliency, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, improve student achievement (since it already spends 85% more per student than the national average), fund the MTA's next capital plan, hold the line on taxes, and deal with the City administration's current issues? Fortunately, we have Governor Hochul’s top 2 aides—Secretary to the Governor Karen Persichilli Keogh and Director of State Operations and Infrastructure Kathryn Garcia—on the Datapoint today to talk about these issues and more.

3 is the number of current and former Comptrollers who sat down to discuss the City and State's finances, economy, population loss and more. While jobs and tourism have recovered, New York continues to face challenges with hybrid work affecting downtowns and the office market, housing affordability, future budget gaps, and needed infrastructure investment. Former NYC Comptroller Bill Thompson moderated a discussion during which NYS Comptroller Tom DiNapoli and NYC Comptroller Brad Lander dig into what the City and State is doing with your money and New York's future.

109,000. This is the number of new homes New York City aims to create over the next 15 years through its City of Yes for Housing Opportunity zoning proposal. Despite broad agreement on the need for more housing, the path is fraught with obstacles. Development is expensive and outdated regulations and zoning have impeded development of new housing and conversion of office buildings. How will New York overcome these challenges and turn promise into progress? To shed light, we’re joined by Dan Garodnick, Director of the Department of City Planning and Chair of the City Planning Commission. In WTDP’s new episode, he helps us unpack the Administration’s proposals, the role of City Planning, and what’s at stake if we fail to address this critical crisis. Listen to NYC Planning Director Dan Garodnick on: -15:41: Explaining City of Yes benefits to potential opponents -20:05: Parking requirements -25:04: How Universal Affordability Preference will deliver -28:08: Office to residential conversions -29:22: Impacts

$116 billion is the total NYC adopted budget for FY 2025, including the $4 billion of FY25 bills that were prepaid. This year’s budget talks between the Mayor and City Council took several twists and turns, ending with the narrowly on-time arrival of an adopted budget. New York City Council Member Justin Brannan, Chair of the Council’s Finance Committee, joined the podcast to discuss the budget, the Council’s role, and his prior career as a musician.

$8.8 trillion is the total combined assets of the nearly 3,000 financial institutions that are regulated and supervised by the New York State Department of Financial Services (DFS). In addition to navigating serious banking crises in recent years, DFS faces challenges on the horizon: artificial intelligence, cyber security, and cryptocurrency, to name a few. Joining the podcast is DFS Superintendent Adrienne Harris, who shares with us the important work state leadership is doing to ensure a strong and secure financial services sector, while navigating this rapidly changing landscape.

6,632 is the number of NYC households who responded to CBC's 2023 NYC Resident Survey: "Straight from New Yorkers." The survey provides the most comprehensive, statistically valid, post-pandemic view of how New Yorkers are feeling about the City's quality of life and the quality of government services. Among the many eyebrow-raising pieces of feedback coming Straight from New Yorkers: Only 30% of rate their quality of life as excellent or good, down from 50% in 2017. Joining the pod to discuss the survey results and the City's priorities is New York City First Deputy Mayor Sheena Wright.

1.4% is the current--and historically low--apartment vacancy rate in New York City. NYC and many parts of New York State are in the throes of a housing crisis caused by decades of underproduction. Solving the housing crisis is key to stemming the tide of New Yorkers leaving the state and to rolling out the welcome mat to new New Yorkers. Joining us to discuss the latest housing policy news affecting both NYC and the state is national housing expert Vicki Been, a professor at NYU's Furman Center and former New York City Deputy Mayor for Housing and Economic Development.

$60 billion is how much the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) estimates it should invest in its infrastructure over the next 5 years. NYCHA faces persistent challenges: recurring budget gaps, rising expenses, weakening rent collection, deteriorating physical conditions, and more. NYCHA's CEO Lisa Bova-Hiatt and Chair Jamie Rubin both spoke with CBC at a recent event to discuss the plans and strategies they've put in place to better manage the nation's largest public housing system.

$233 billion is the total NYS budget proposed by Governor Hochul for fiscal year 2025, and that is the talk of the town in Albany as executive and legislative leaders work on a new budget agreement in time for the April 1st deadline. NYS Budget Director Blake Washington, who is at the center of budget negotiations happening right now, spoke with the CBC at a recent event. He and CBC President Andrew Rein discussed the state's current fiscal picture and details regarding the state's large structural gap, and more.

$39.5 billion is how much NYC spends to educate our students each year. The New York City Public Schools has an enormous and challenging task: to educate and develop 900,000 students who come from a wide diversity of backgrounds and needs. And it’s important to ask: Are we getting the return we need on our dollars? How are our students doing? To answer this and other pressing questions is NYC Schools Chancellor David Banks and Deputy Chancellor and Chief Operating Officer Emma Vadehra.