Joseph Hernandez, Republican candidate for New York State comptroller, recently unveiled a detailed fiscal road map demonstrating how New York City can eliminate its projected $12.5 billion budget deficit without raising taxes, while sharply criticizing calls by Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Gov. Kathy Hochul to increase taxes on New Yorkers.

“Raising taxes before cutting waste is irresponsible,” Hernandez said. “Here is a novel idea: stop overspending, cut waste and manage the budget competently.”

Hernandez’s plan shows that the full $12.5 billion deficit can be eliminated by enforcing spending discipline, restoring accountability and ending inefficiencies that have been allowed to persist for years.

The plan identifies the following achievable savings:

$4 billion by ending migrant and sanctuary-city spending abuses, including ending hotel use, capping per-person costs, limiting shelter stays and requiring federal reimbursement before any expansion;

$2.5 billion through agency headcount attrition and ending overtime abuse, including hiring freezes and stricter spending controls across city agencies;

$1.75 billion by cutting the NYC Department of Education central bureaucracy, not classrooms; consolidating administrative offices; reducing consultants; and aligning spending with declining enrollment;

$1.25 billion by eliminating wasteful consultant contracts and no-bid deals and requiring return-on-investment audits;

$1 billion by ending failed economic development programs and nonprofit pass-through grants that lack performance standards or clawback provisions;

$1.25 billion by reducing waste and abuse in health and social services through real-time audits, vendor caps and cross-agency data matching; and

$750 million through delaying non-essential capital projects and improving debt service management, including refinancing high-interest obligations.

“These reforms close the deficit to zero without raising a single tax,” Hernandez said. “No gimmicks. No excuses… “New Yorkers are tired of being told to pay more while government refuses to control itself. Families cut back when budgets are tight. Government should be held to the same standard.”

www.hernandezforny.com