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Council Member Justin Brannan's opening remarks for FY2026 budget hearing on libraries and cultural affairs
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Council Member Justin Brannan opens the eighth day of FY2026 executive budget hearings, focusing on the city's library systems and the Department of Cultural Affairs. He provides context on the proposed budget for libraries, highlighting the council's call for additional funding and expressing concern over previous cuts.
- The proposed FY2026 budget for libraries is $496.8 million, an increase of 3.3% from the preliminary plan.
- The council previously called for an additional $62.5 million to reverse funding cuts and expand library services.
- Brannan emphasizes the importance of keeping libraries open seven days a week and prioritizing vital services in budget negotiations.
Justin Brannan
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Thank you, sergeant.
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Okay.
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Good morning and welcome to the eighth day of FY twenty six executive budget hearings.
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I'm council member Justin Brannen.
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I chair the committee on finance.
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Today's hearings will begin with the city's library systems followed by the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs.
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I'm pleased to be joined by my colleague, Councilmember Carlina Rivera, who chairs the Committee on Cultural Affairs, Libraries, and International Intergroup Relations.
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We've been joined so far this morning by Councilmember Lewis.
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Welcome to Linda Johnson, President and CEO of the Brooklyn Public Library Tony Marks, President and CEO of the New York Public Library and Dennis Walcott, President and CEO of the Queens Public Library.
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Thank you all for joining us today to answer our questions.
0:01:09
Just to set the table, on 05/01/2025, the administration released the executive financial plan for FY '20 '6 to '20 '9 with a proposed FY twenty six budget of $115,100,000,000 The library's proposed FY twenty six budget of 496,800,000.0 across all three systems represents less than 1% of the administration's FY twenty six executive plan.
0:01:36
This is an increase of 16,400,000.0 or 3.3% from the $480,000,000 originally budgeted in the preliminary plan back in January.
0:01:47
The increase is mostly the result of added funds for collective bargaining.
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As of March 2025, the libraries collectively had four twenty nine vacancies relative to their FY twenty five budgeted headcount.
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In our preliminary budget response, the council called on the mayor to add 62 and a half million to reserve, to reverse a series of funding cuts made to the libraries and to expand their current hours to increase programming and reinstate Sunday library service.
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Despite the mayor's recent restorations in the executive budget Libraries first.
0:02:26
Despite the mayor's recent restorations in the executive budget, they represent a fraction of the cuts he's made to key programs like here which the council has found were never necessary in the first place.
0:02:38
In a city with a budget as big as ours, keeping the libraries open seven days a week should not be some big victory.
0:02:44
As budget negotiations continue, it's critical that we work off the same framework in prioritizing restoring our city's most vital services and programs that our communities truly can afford.
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My questions today will largely go further on the council's preliminary response along with examining the library's capital gap.
0:03:02
Now want to turn to my co chair for this hearing, Council Member Rivera for her opening statement.