As New York City voters prepare to choose from the dozens of candidates running for mayor, it’s important to understand what the job resident can and cannot do. Expand preschool education, create a new municipal ID card, add more bike paths – do it! Feel like setting a millionaire tax, changing the subway rate, or building a casino – not so fast. To help voters assess which candidate is best suited for this job and all it entails, here’s a brief look at what the New York City mayor is doing.
Serves as Chief Executive
The Mayor serves as the City’s Chief Executive, with the authority to appoint and dismiss the commissioners of more than 40 city agencies, including police, fire, education, sanitation, health, and more. The mayor also appoints dozens of representatives to councils and committees. With up to two four-year terms for an annual salary of $ 258,750, the mayor sets the agenda for the city in terms of policy and budgetary priorities. The mayor has full control over the city’s public schools, authorized by state approval, meaning the mayor will stop anything related to education. The mayor also acts as the primary influencer with a city-wide and national pulpit for bullies. The job is often referred to as the second most important and most difficult job in US politics and government.
Sets budget priorities for billions of dollars
The city runs on an annual fiscal calendar that starts on July 1 and runs through the end of June. The mayor oversees the preparation of a preliminary budget in January, as well as the capital budget and financial plans. That proposal will be the first step in a month-long negotiation between the mayor and the city council about how to allocate the city’s money, which departments to grow or shrink, which programs to expand or contract, and how large the municipal workforce should be. The mayor also oversees the office that contracts with the city’s municipal unions on wages and benefits.
Last month, Mayor Bill de Blasio presented a preliminary $ 92 billion budget plan for fiscal year 2022, highlighting essential services and public response to the coronavirus pandemic. Following input from the Council, the mayor will present an updated executive budget at the end of April. The mayor and the Council must reach agreement and establish a balanced budget by June 30.
Manages relationships with state and federal legislators
The mayor acts as the city’s advocate, champion, and negotiator and fosters (hopefully) productive relationships with state and federal lawmakers. One of the first distinguishing marks of de Blasio’s mayor was his severed relationship with Governor Andrew Cuomo. Both Democrats, the two, started fighting from the early months of 2014 on how to pay for kindergarten and whether to expand charter schools. Each year the feud seemed to escalate, with the mayor often making annual trips to Albany to testify before a joint committee of the state legislature on the city’s budget needs to moments of heightened drama. That tense relationship persists and remained problematic during the city’s response to Covid-19. The mayor must also maintain productive relationships with federal lawmakers. Ultimately, it’s about making sure that the city receives the funding and that legislation is passed that benefits the residents of the five boroughs.
Proposes, enforces and vetoes local laws
The mayor can propose new laws to be passed by the Council or signed by implementing decrees. The mayor can also veto legislation passed by the city council. (Any veto can be overridden by two-thirds of the vote of the Council.) That could be a policy to ban smoking in city bars and restaurants, a credit to Mayor Micheal Bloomberg; or the extension of the law on paid sick leave in the city, one of Mayor de Blasio’s first achievements.
Oversees important decisions about zoning, land use and housing policy
The mayor plays a major role in the development of the city when it comes to zoning and land use. That could mean proposing changes to city-wide zoning plans, such as Blasio-backed Mandatory Inclusive Housing (MIH), a change intended to encourage affordable housing in the city. The mayor also plays a decisive role in so-called ULURP decisions, which are cases where a developer applies to build something that is different from what the land is currently intended to be used for. In essence, the mayor can leave a lasting mark on neighborhoods, coastlines, streetscapes, and the people who love or hate them based on what is or isn’t built.
Makes court appointments
The mayor appoints criminal court judges, family court judges, and provisional civil court judges, in accordance with state law.
Line of succession
If the mayor resigns, dies, or is fired, the Public Advocate will act as acting mayor until a special election or general election is held, depending on when the vacancy arises.
Cool stuff
The mayor ex-officio sits on the boards of the 33 cultural institutions owned by the city that make up the Cultural Institutions Group, as well as the Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Arts Education, Jazz at Lincoln Center, Museum of Arts and Design, Museum of Modern Art, the New York Public Library and the Queens Borough Public Library.
Can the mayor levy taxes?
The mayor can levy property taxes if approved by the city council, something Mayor Michael Bloomberg did in 2002 to address the fiscal crisis that had arisen in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks. For any other tax (millionaire, mansion, personal income), the mayor must get approval from the Council before seeking approval from the state legislatures.
The other options for generating income: fines, fees and what the municipality charges for water and sewerage payments.
Can the mayor fix the subways?
The metros are controlled by the MTA, which is essentially controlled by the state. Several mayoral candidates, past and present, have proposed taking control of the system. But the idea would require changes to state law, a new budget structure, and great partnership with Albany.
However, the mayor can have a major impact on the city streets in terms of parking rules, bike lanes, bus lanes and streets, and outdoor dining, proposals that have become part of transforming the cityscape during the pandemic. The mayor can also create new modes of transportation, such as setting up bicycle sharing programs or launching a city-wide ferry system.
Can the mayor open a new casino?
No. The state regulates gaming activities in the state and issues casino licenses. While the idea has gained traction with some real estate developers and at least one mayoral candidate, it is far from within the purview of what the mayor can do, without Albany’s help.