Summary
The City began FY 2025 (FY25) with $10.410 billion in cash-on-hand, versus $12.387 billion at the same time last year. During the first half of fiscal year 2025, the City’s cash balances averaged $8.949 billion, compared to $10.460 billion at the same time last year. Through December 2024, receipts totaled $70.614 billion, while expenditures totaled $67.836 billion. Fiscal year to date, total receipts rose 13.5%, while expenditures increased 7.1%. Both receipts and expenditures for this period were the highest amounts on record.
Total tax receipts measured more than $40 billion, up 17.0% compared to the same period last year, only partially explained by the timing of property tax receipts between the two years [1] Overall, NYC’s economy is continuing to grow at a moderate pace, and all NYC taxes are up year over year. The office market has strengthened, tourism is growing, and the residential real estate market started to rebound. Cash receipts were also boosted by almost $4.231 billion in COVID-19-related aid and COVID-19 FEMA reimbursements.
Expenditures grew by 7.1%. The growth in expenditures is largely attributed to higher spending on public assistance and other social services, including shelter for people seeking asylum. The City also spent more funds on 3-K and increased spending on special education Carter Cases.
At the end of December 2024, the cash balance stood at $13.187 billion, compared to $11.290 billion in FY24, $8.285 billion in FY23, and $6.513 billion in FY22. The current cash balance includes $1.964 billion in the Revenue Stabilization Fund (RSF), the City’s rainy-day fund.
Notes
In this report, tax receipts, with the exception of personal income tax, are gross of refunds. Real property tax and personal income tax are gross of debt service funding. Note that totals may not equal the sum of components due to rounding.
Cash Balances
At the end of 2Q25, the City recorded an unrestricted cash balance of $13.187 billion. Typically, the lowest daily cash balance of a fiscal year occurs during the second quarter. This year’s seasonal low measured $4.602 billion, versus $5.223 billion in FY24 and $3.966 billion in FY23. In the last 22 years, the City has maintained sufficient operating cash without resorting to short-term borrowing.
In recent years, the cash total includes the Revenue Stabilization Fund (RSF) balance, the City’s fiscal cushion. In 2020 the State legislation allowed the City to immediately deposit into the RSF the surpluses accumulated at the end of previous fiscal years for a total amount of $493 million. In subsequent years, the City allocated $5 million to the RSF in FY21, $1.455 billion in FY22, $5 million in FY23, and $5 million in FY24. The present balance in the RSF stands at $1.964 billion.[2]
Both receipts and expenditures were higher in 1H25, compared to 1H24. The 1H24 daily cash balance averaged $8.949 billion, compared to $10.460 billion during the same period last year.
Cash Receipts
October 2024 – December 2024 (2Q25)
Receipts at a Glance
Total cash receipts in 2Q25 rose 18.8% versus a year ago.
The City collected $19.816 billion in tax revenues in 2Q25, $3.760 billion, or 23.4%, more than during the same period last year. The largest revenue source, the Real Property Tax, was up 41.9%, or $2.792 billion, due to the timing of receipts. In December 2024 the City collected $7.350 billion in real property tax, $2.070 billion more than in December 2023 (in December 2023 the last business day fell on December 29th and some Real Property Tax receipts due by December 31st were received and counted in the January 2024 cash receipts). According to the final FY 2025 property tax assessment roll, citywide taxable billable assessed value, the portion of market value to which tax rates are applied, increased by 4.4 percent to $299.432 billion. All other taxes are up by 10.3%.
The City received $7.412 billion in Federal and State aid, $960 million less than the second quarter of FY24, but still high by historical standards. This quarter’s federal aid amount included $1.773 billion in Covid-19 related aid. The majority of these funds, $1.655 billion, were Federal Emergency and Management Agency (FEMA) public assistance grants. Last year, the City also received significant Covid-19 related funds in the second quarter, primarily American Rescue Plan-State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds (ARP-SLFRF) and Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations (CRRSA) education grants, included in the federal education total, which for FY25 were received in the first quarter.
Miscellaneous (non-tax) revenues rose $254 million, or 12.9%, due to higher rental income and water and sewer charges, up $267 million.
The City received $5.072 billion in capital transfers in 2Q25, compared to $2.365 billion in 2Q24. Removing the effect of capital transfers, receipts increased 10.7%.
July 2024 – December 2024 (1H25)
Receipts at a Glance
Total cash receipts for 1H25 were up 13.5% versus a year ago. Tax receipts are up by 17% and described in more detail below.
The combined 1H25 total of Federal and State aid was the highest 1H amount on record, growing 11.4% compared to the same period last year. In 1H25, the City received almost $4.231 billion in COVID-19-related aid and COVID-19 FEMA reimbursements, compared to $3.152 billion at the same time last year.
The cash receipts include the retention of real property and personal income tax revenues for GO and TFA FTS debt service payments. Debt service funding is counted as a negative inflow (rather than a positive expense). In 1H25, debt service funding decreased total cash revenues by $1.207 billion.
Miscellaneous revenues increased 8.7%, or $395 million. Rental income and water and sewer charges increased $381 million, while income from private grants rose $229 million. The principal factor behind the rise in miscellaneous revenue last year was a significant increase in interest income. In 1H25 the City collected $335 million in interest income, $64 million less than in 1H24, due to lower interest rates.
In 1H25, capital transfers added $7.615 billion to the Central Treasury, versus $6.029 billion in 1H24. Removing the effect of capital transfers, receipts increased 12.1%.
Taxes[3]
Tax receipts in 1H25 rose 17.0% from a year ago. The Real Property tax rose 27.8%, from $15.912 billion in 1H24 to $20.341 billion in 1H25, in part due to timing of receipts.
Personal income (PIT) and Pass-Through Entity Tax (PTET) collections increased 12.8%, or $880 million. PIT year-over-year growth in the first half of FY 2025 includes large contributions from withholding (up 9.3 percent) and estimated tax payments (up 26.4 percent), while PTET payments were up 50.7 percent. The rise in withholding is reflecting strong 2024 gains in average and total wages. Strong business profits–especially in the securities industry–and growth in financial market values have fueled a rise in estimated tax and PTET and also increased bonus payments (although the effect will be mostly felt in the third quarter of the fiscal year). PIT + PTET year-over-year growth rates for FY 2025 are also somewhat inflated because of revenue timing issues related to the rollout of PTET which had suppressed FY 2024 PIT + PTET levels.
Sales tax receipts grew 3.2%, less than inflation in the NYC metropolitan area.
Cumulative receipts from business taxes (general corporation and unincorporated business taxes) increased 5.8%, pushed by profits in the finance sector.
Commercial rent tax receipts were up 3.4%. The City’s office market has continued to gradually improve since last spring. Vacancy rates have remained near their pandemic peaks, but office availability rates–which are a leading indicator of vacancies–declined to a 4-year low in January 2025, and market rents have advanced to their highest level since mid-2020.
Mortgage and real property transfer tax receipts increased 5.3%. The elevated mortgage rates and high home prices have depressed real estate transactions in the City in the last three years. In 2Q24, residential sales started to heat up again after a dip in mortgage rates and due to price reductions.[4]
Hotel occupancy tax receipts were up 9.5%. The city’s overall hotel occupancy rate in 2024 was 85.1 percent, up from 82.2 percent in 2023 and edging closer to its last pre-pandemic level of 86.9 percent in 2019. Room rates have also increased strongly, with the 2024 average daily rate (ADR) at $337, up from $322 (4.7 percent) in 2023. Even after adjusting for inflation, the ADR in 2024 was above its pre-pandemic level in 2019 by 3.3 percent.
Cash Expenditures (Including Capital)
October 2024 – December 2024 (2Q25)
Cash Expenditures at a Glance
Cash expenditures, including capital, totaled $31.645 billion in 2Q25, averaging $510 million daily. During the same period last year, cash expenditures totaled $29.660 billion and averaged $486 million. Gross payroll was unchanged. Spending on fringe benefits grew 7.7%. Fringe benefits include pension contributions, social security, health plan, and supplemental (union-related) welfare benefits.
Other than personnel service expenditures (OTPS) rose 7.0%. Public assistance and other social services spending (where much of the spending on asylum seekers sits) jumped the most, up 13.3%. Vendor and other services spending increased 5.4% while spending on medical assistance went up 3.9%.
Outlays in the “All Other” category increased 17.1%, mostly due to the increase in City-funded capital spending.
July 2024 – December 2024 (1H25)
Cash Expenditures at a Glance
Cash expenditures in 1H25 were the highest 1H expenditures on record, up 7.1% compared to the same period last year.
Personnel spending totaled $28.080 billion in 1H25, 1.6% down versus a year ago. Gross payroll declined 5%, to $18.045 billion. Last year’s gross payroll was unusually high because it included retroactive wage increases to Police Benevolent Association and United Federation of Teachers members. Fringe and other benefits rose 5.2%, to $10.035 billion, with pension expenditures rising $314 million, or 6.7%, and health plan expenditures rising $268 million, or 8.5%.
OTPS expenditures rose 13.7%, to $27.667 billion. Public assistance and other social services spending increased the most, up 24.3%. Public assistance and other social services mostly consist of cash and housing assistance, homeless shelter and services, foster care, and early learning programs for children from low-income families.
Cash assistance spending grew 12%, reaching $1.450 billion in 1H25. The most recent statistics show that more than 584,554 New Yorkers received cash assistance in December 2024, up from 499,552 in December 2023.[5] Spending at the Department of Homeless Services on homeless shelters for families increased 19.6%, and totaled $694 million in 1H25. Spending on CityFHEPS, a rental assistance voucher to help individuals and families in homeless shelters and at risk of homelessness went up 46.4%, totaling $429 million in 1H25. Expenditures on childcare for low-income children rose 26.4% to $548 million, largely due to changes to the income eligibility thresholds.[6] In addition, in 1H25 the City spent $94 million on Coronavirus Recovery Rental Assistance, compared to $14 million in 1H24.
Vendor and other service spending went up 11.5%. Pre-k expenditures for three-year-olds increased $203 million, followed by judgement and claims, up $107 million; and Carter cases, up $140 million.
Emergency spending for people seeking asylum is found in public assistance and other social services, vendor payments and “All Other” spending. In 1H25 the City spent $1.793 billion on migrant expenditures, compared to $1.248 billion in 1H24. Spending on sanctuary shelters for asylum seekers rose from $210 million in 1H24 to $591 million in 1H25. Migrant expenditures within vendor and other spending category include food, medical care, and other essentials. These expenses equaled $470 million in 1H25, up $83 million compared to 1H24. Spending on NYC Health + Hospitals (H+H), which is included in the “All Other” spending category, increased $683 million compared to 1H24. Beginning in 3Q23, H+H began receiving funding from the City for managing Humanitarian Emergency Response and Relief Centers (HERRCs) that serve newly arrived asylum seekers. So far this fiscal year, H+H received $674 million in HERRCs funding, up $82 million, or 13.8% versus a year ago. As of February 2025, there are 15,400 individuals seeking asylum residing in H+H managed facilities.
Overall, NYC has welcomed more than 230,900 asylum seekers since spring of 2022 and about 44,500 of these asylum seekers are residing in City shelters or emergency humanitarian shelters. (See the Comptroller’s resource hub Accounting for Asylum Seeker Services for more detail).
Outlays considered “All Other” were up 15.7%, as a result of higher spending on City-funded capital projects.
“All Other” Spending
Certain bookkeeping procedures within the City’s financial management system serve as a mechanism through which City agencies give notice of upcoming expenditures or of funds held in trust on behalf of non-City entities. Such entries are collectively captured in the Fund 600 and 700 adjustment and are deducted from the calculation of the unrestricted cash balance. As the City’s business proceeds throughout the year, the Fund 600 and 700 adjustment may be reflected as a positive expense (more cash excluded from the unrestricted balance) or as a negative expense (as previously disclosed Fund 600 and 700 obligations are satisfied). In 1H25, the Fund 600 and 700 adjustment was reflected as a negative expense, and it increased the unrestricted cash balance by $3 million. In 1H24, the Fund 600 and 700 adjustments reduced the unrestricted cash balance by $200 million.
Capital Expenditures
City-funded capital expenditures are primarily financed from the proceeds of General Obligation (GO), New York City Transitional Finance Authority (TFA), and New York City Municipal Water Finance Authority (NY Water) debt. Non-City funded capital expenditures for education are financed by TFA Building Aid bonds. Capital expenditures are initially paid from the New York City Central Treasury and then reimbursed from various capital accounts and State sources.
Capital Expenditures October – December 2024 (2Q25)
Capital expenditures totaled $3.504 billion in 2Q25, up 17% from $2.996 billion in 2Q24. City-funded capital expenditures grew 17.9% while non-City-funded capital expenditures declined 3.7%.
Reimbursements to the Central Treasury for capital expenditures exceeded reimbursable expenditures during 2Q25. Capital expenditures are initially paid from the City Treasury and then reimbursed from bond proceeds as appropriate. Over the long term, capital expenditures and reimbursements should balance.
However, from quarter to quarter, the lag between an expenditure and the offsetting reimbursement can result in a gain or loss to the Central Treasury. In 2Q25, this dynamic resulted in a gain of $1.699
Capital Expenditures July 2024 – December 2024 (1H25)
Total capital expenditures equaled $7.383 billion in 1H25 compared to $6.895 billion during the same period last year. City-funded capital expenditures increased 6.5% while non-City-funded capital expenditures grew 19.4%.
1H24 reimbursements exceeded eligible spending, resulting in a $578 million gain to the Central Treasury. Over the past ten years, 1H reimbursements have exceeded eligible spending by 4.6%.
Financings
In FY25, the City plans to issue $15.527 billion in GO, TFA FTS and NYW bonds for new money capital purposes, compared to $11.426 billion in FY24.
The City issued almost $7.465 billion of new money debt in 1H25, leaving $8.062 billion of issuance projected for the remainder of the current fiscal year.
Four new money transactions closed in 2Q25.
The first transaction was the TFA FTS 2025 Series C sale that totaled $2.100 billion. The sale consisted of $1.500 billion of tax-exempt fixed rate bonds, $300 million of taxable fixed rate bonds, and $300 million of tax-exempt variable rate bonds. Net new money proceeds for the transaction were $2.252 billion.
The second transaction was the NYW 2025 Series AA sale of $887 million of tax-exempt fixed rate bonds. The sale consisted of $700 million tax-exempt fixed rate bonds for new money purposes and $187 million of tax-exempt fixed rate bonds for refunding purposes. Net new money proceeds for the transaction were $754 million and the refunding component achieved $7 million in budget savings.
The third transaction was the GO 2025 Series D sale of $1.500 billion of taxable, fixed rate bonds. The sale consisted of $820 million of Social Bonds that will help support affordable housing and $680 million of bonds that will fund general capital projects.
The fourth transaction was the TFA FTS 2025 Series D sale which included $1.500 billion of tax-exempt fixed rate bonds. Net new money proceeds for the transaction were $1.612 billion.
Overall, in 1H25, the City issued $8.013 billion in new money bonds and $3.753 billion in refunding bonds.
Bond Issuance
Endnotes
[1]Tax receipts due by July 1st are received and counted towards June or July depending on the final business day of the month, and similarly for taxes due by December 31st.
[2]Prior to the establishment of the RSF (enabled by a 2019 Charter amendment and 2020 State legislation), the year-end surplus (typically $5 million) remained in the General Fund but was classified as nonspendable. The legislation allowed to “deposit” into the RSF $493 million previously classified as nonspendable. Only the amounts subsequently allocated through the budget process are shown in Chart 2 above.
[3]In this report, tax receipts, with the exception of personal income tax, are gross of refunds. Real property tax and personal income tax are gross of debt service funding.
[4] https://www.elliman.com/corporate-resources/market-reports
[5] https://www.nyc.gov/assets/hra/downloads/pdf/ca_recipients.pdf
[6] https://comptroller.nyc.gov/reports/spotlight-nycs-publicly-supported-child-care-programs/#:~:text=This%20Spotlight%20provides%20a%20numbers,recent%20budget%20maneuvering%20on%20the