Hundreds of elderly people, city council members, and rights activists gathered outside City Hall on May 16 to protest New York City Mayor Adams’ proposed cuts to the budget of the Department for the Aging.
Adams has already reduced the Department for the Aging’s budget by $20 million for the current fiscal year, which ends in June. His proposed budget for the 2025 fiscal year, starting in July this year until June next year, includes an additional cut of $72.9 million. Rights activists pointed out that if these cuts go through, it could mean the closure of up to 60 senior centers across the city as early as January next year, and important services like the Home Delivered Meals program would also be reduced.
According to amNY, City Council Speaker Adams, who attended the protest, stated that the City Council will not allow this situation to happen. They are not only advocating for restoring funding to senior centers but also for increasing funding for elderly meals.
Beth Finkel, Director of the New York chapter of the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP), stated that according to the latest report released by the Independent Budget Office (IBO) on that day, the city is projected to have a budget surplus of $2.2 billion for the current and upcoming fiscal year, yet the public is left worrying about an $80 million cut to the Department for the Aging budget and the potential closure of senior centers, which she deemed outrageous.
The Commissioner for the Department for the Aging, Lorraine Cortés-Vázquez, responded by stating that the 2025 fiscal year budget will not see an $80 million cut and no senior centers will be closed, dismissing such claims as inaccurate. As reported by amNY, insiders from the City Council revealed that the actual cut is estimated to be around $72.9 million.
Mayor Adams is determined on the “strong fiscal management,” claiming that the previous budget cuts helped reduce the originally projected $7 billion budget deficit. Adams and the City Council are legally required to reach an agreement on the final budget for the next fiscal year by June 30 and have it passed.