City Council adopts $125.8B FY2027 budget, secures FEPS settlement and expands Fair Fares and college savings

The New York City Council adopted a $125.8 billion fiscal year 2027 budget on June 30, 2026, finalizing a broad package of spending and policy changes that council leaders said will expand housing vouchers, reduce transit costs for low-income riders and seed college savings accounts for public-school kindergartners.

Speaker Julie Menon, opening the stated meeting, described the agreement as historic and said the council secured both a settlement with the administration and new policy changes for the city’s rental-assistance program. “We were able to get the administration to drop the lawsuit against the council,” Menon said, adding that the package couples fiscal restraints with expanded support for vulnerable New Yorkers.

Why it matters: Council leadership framed the budget as a combination of fiscal discipline and targeted investment. Members highlighted three headline items: a settlement and legislation to expand the city FEPS rental-assistance voucher program; an enlargement of the Fair Fares transit subsidy; and the creation of NYC Kids Rise, a $1,000 college savings account for each public-school kindergartner.

What the package includes: The adopted budget baselines and funds multiple long-standing priorities advanced by the council. Council Member Pina Sanchez, sponsor of the Intro 966 rental-assistance measure, described the FEPS agreement as an investment in shelter exits and eviction prevention: “With $300 million committed across fiscal year 27 and 28, the new program established by Intro 966 will reach New Yorkers excluded from the current city FEPS program,” she said, listing populations newly eligible under the proposal. Sanchez also contrasted costs: “It costs $54 a day to keep a family housed with a city FEPS voucher compared to $270 a day for a family shelter bed,” language she used to underline the council’s fiscal argument for voucher expansion.

Other notable budget items flagged during debate include:

- Fair Fares: Eligibility will expand to residents earning up to 200% of the federal poverty level; Menon said that change will make transit more affordable for about 1.3 million New Yorkers.

- NYC Kids Rise: The budget funds a $1,000 college savings account for every City public school kindergartner, intended for vocational, two‑year or four‑year post‑secondary use.

- Rainy day fund and baselines: The council set aside an additional $350 million for the rainy day fund and baselined significant funding increases for libraries, parks and other services; members cited a $29.1 million parks baseline and restored baseline funding for park maintenance.

Votes and formal outcomes: The clerk announced that most items on the general orders calendar were adopted by a vote of 51 in the affirmative and zero in the negative; the council then formally declared the executive expense, revenue and capital budgets, and the community development program for FY2027, adopted as of 8:07 p.m. on June 30, 2026. A small number of individual items recorded different tallies (for example, Intro 31A and Intro 92A recorded separate roll-call results as noted in the official vote tallies).

What’s next: Several of the budget’s measures were passed as introductions or preconsidered resolutions and may require follow-up implementation by city agencies or additional municipal action to begin enrollment and program rollout. Council members who spoke during the roll-call explanations identified next steps for administering the FEPS expansion, Fair Fares changes, and new children’s savings accounts.

The meeting closed after adoption of the budget and a slate of ceremonial resolutions; Speaker Menon declared the stated meeting of June 30, 2026, closed.