New York City budget stalled as Mamdani, Menin clash over rent aid

City Hall’s budget talks remained deadlocked on Monday, June 29, over CityFHEPS, the rental assistance program at the center of a clash between Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Council Speaker Julie Menin. The dispute had already stalled passage of New York City’s $125 billion budget as the city raced toward the legal deadline before the new fiscal year begins on July 1.

CityFHEPS, short for the City Fighting Homelessness and Eviction Prevention Supplement, pays part of eligible tenants’ monthly rent anywhere in New York State for up to five years. The program is administered by the Department of Social Services, which includes the Department of Homeless Services and the Human Resources Administration, and it currently serves about 66,000 families. It is a roughly $1.8 billion program in fiscal 2027.

Menin and other council members have made the voucher program the condition for approving the budget. Menin and other members said they would not vote for the spending plan unless Mamdani allocated more money for CityFHEPS, and council members have warned they could block any budget deal that does not expand the program.

On Friday, June 26, Menin canceled an expected budget handshake and appeared at City Hall with more than a dozen council members to press for more funding in the 2027 budget.

Mamdani backed CityFHEPS expansion as a candidate, but his administration earlier this year appealed a court ruling that would require implementation of the council’s 2023 CityFHEPS reform laws. Those laws, enacted over then-Mayor Eric Adams’ veto, removed barriers to rental assistance and broadened eligibility for New Yorkers trying to avoid eviction and homelessness.

The Appellate Division of the New York State Supreme Court rejected the administration’s arguments last year and ruled that nothing in state law prevents the council from legislating in this area.