De Blasio Furloughs Himself and His Entire Staff amid NYC Budget Crisis

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio announced that he will furlough himself and his City Hall staff for one week as the city weathers a budget crisis.

“We’ve already had to make some tough cuts,” de Blasio announced Wednesday morning. “We’re doing everything we can to stop those cuts from becoming worse.”

De Blasio, his wife first lady Chirlane McCray, and nearly 500 other staff members will take a week of unpaid furlough sometime between October and March 2021. The largely symbolic move is projected to save the city $860,000.

New York City is experiencing a $9 billion revenue loss due to the fiscal crisis in the city caused by the coronavirus pandemic. The Democratic mayor has pressured Albany unsuccessfully to allow the city to borrow more, while meanwhile Republicans and the Trump administration have rejected proposals by Democrats to send nearly $1 trillion in aid to state and local governments.