spoil_of_the_cities t1_jba711q wrote on March 7, 2023 at 4:13 PM

Lol the actual city accountants vs. "The City Council Finance Division"

mowotlarx t1_jbafi77 wrote on March 7, 2023 at 5:09 PM

One agency is beholden to the Mayor (OMB) and the other isn't. I wouldn't consider one more trustworthy than the other. But I definitely wouldn't consider OMB to be a neutral party of professionals. They were told by Adams to produce what he wanted, I assure you.

Daddy_Macron t1_jbbs8l5 wrote on March 7, 2023 at 10:18 PM

Most NYC government employees are non-partisan and are not affiliated with a Mayor. Unless you got evidence that Adams got them to cook the books for him, this is no different than the Republican Deep State garbage.

PiffityPoffity t1_jbcx5fg wrote on March 8, 2023 at 3:22 AM

The Mayor’s Office of Management and Budget is very much affiliated with the Mayor.

Daddy_Macron t1_jbel7wl wrote on March 8, 2023 at 2:23 PM

And their staff of 400 analysts, economists and accountants doesn't change over between Mayors. It's like saying the Congressional Budget Office is affiliated with whomever the Senate Leader or Speaker of the House is, when the Office actually just does the same work regardless of who is in power.

alias_impossible t1_jbcsmf7 wrote on March 8, 2023 at 2:46 AM

City Council Finance's projections and math is available online. They have public hearings happening now to understand the issue, and listen to the public testify about it. They also invite the independent budget office and others to discuss.

Is it that you just want a smaller budget due to fiscal conservatism? Or do you like have an axe to grind with the City Council Finance Division?

https://council.nyc.gov/budget/fy2023/

spoil_of_the_cities t1_jbcwjb6 wrote on March 8, 2023 at 3:17 AM

I have a generally low opinion of the City Council. I actually knew one of them back in the day and can make 1/51 of that judgment from direct personal interactions!

I hold the city's various agencies generally in higher esteem than the Council.

So I figure the bureaucracy's team is probably a bit better than the Council's team, but more importantly, less likely to manipulate things in favor of the Mayor than the Council's team would be likely to manipulate things in favor of the Council.

> Is it that you just want a smaller budget due to fiscal conservatism?

The number under discussion is an estimate of a future fact - it is better to have a more accurate estimate.

alias_impossible t1_jbcx1x3 wrote on March 8, 2023 at 3:21 AM

I agree. I find IBO's estimates at yesterday's hearing to be most accurate, and and they said that while this year could tolerate more spending without issues, in two years it would be an issue with current estimates because of the risk of recession and higher interest rates on debt.

Just saying that Council Finance is actually pretty conservative based on my interactions, they're just more transparent than the Mayor's office because their documents have to be written to any council member's understanding. Whereas OMB really is wonky. Not bad! I respect OMB staff I've worked with. Just, not inherently transparent.