New York City Comptroller Stringer Releases Fiscal Year 2017 Popular Annual Financial Report

  New York City Comptroller Scott M. Stringer released the Popular Annual Financial Report (PAFR) for Fiscal Year 2017. For the third year in a row, the report presents information on the City’s revenues, expenses, budget, and capital projects in 27 easy-to-understand pages and includes dozens of graphs, charts, and plain-language explanations to help everyday New Yorkers understand the budget.

“In a world of ‘alternative facts’, it’s more critical than ever to deliver digestible information directly to New Yorkers. Our City’s finances are complex — last year, we spent $86.2 billion – and sunlight matters. New Yorkers deserve to know where that money comes from and where it’s going. This report breaks down important data in an accessible way and I encourage every New Yorker to take a look,” New York City Comptroller Scott M. Stringer said.

The two previous reports have received the Government Finance Officers Association’s Award for Outstanding Achievement in Popular Annual Financial Reporting. The Fiscal Year 2017 PAFR has been submitted for the same award this year.

The majority of the data in the PAFR comes from the Comptroller’s Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, which is released every year on October 31st. This year’s PAFR highlights information including:

New York City Saw its 7th Consecutive Year of Job Gains

• The City added 69,600 private-sector jobs in FY 2017, a gain of 1.9 percent;
• Approximately 45% of the new private-sector jobs were in mid- to high-wage sectors;
• All five boroughs had their lowest unemployment rates since FY 2008 – 4.2 percent in Manhattan, 4.2 percent in Queens, 4.8 percent in Staten Island, 4.9 percent in Brooklyn, and 6.5 percent in the Bronx;

Taxes and Revenue

• Overall, the City brought in more than $85 billion in revenues in Fiscal Year 2017, split between program revenues – such as grants – and general revenues, like taxes.
• In FY17, New York City received nearly $29 billion in grants – primarily in the form of state and federal aid, and program revenues such as charges for services – $3 billion above the previous year. The largest associated revenues were from grants received for education programs, which received over $12 billion, and social services grants, which brought in more than $5 billion. General government grants were the third highest category at $3 billion, an increase of over $1 billion compared to last year.
• Another $56.3 billion came in from general revenues, an increase of $1.7 billion from the previous year. Sources included $24.5 billion in real estate taxes, $11.3 billion in personal income taxes, and $8.3 billion in sales and use taxes.
• In the last year, 45 percent of tax revenues came from real estate taxes, compared to 20 percent from personal income tax, 15 percent from sales and use tax, and 20 percent from other taxes.

Expenses Grew

• In FY17, the City spent $77 billion from its general fund – an increase of roughly $3.3 billion from FY16.
• The largest share of resources was dedicated to education, at $23.3 billion.

Capital Project Commitments Rose

• Capital commitments totaled $10.86 billion, about $2.4 billion — or 28% — more than in FY16.
• The surge in capital commitments was led by the Department of Environmental Protection, which saw an increase of $901 million, and the Department of Education, which had an increase of $632 million.
• Nearly one-third of the FY 2017 capital budget – $3.1 billion – was dedicated to the Department of Education. The Department of Environmental Protection was next with $2.5 billion, or 23 percent, followed by the Department of Transportation at $1.6 billion, or 15 percent.

Peer-City Comparisons

• In 2016 – the most recent comparison available – New York City had 60.3 million tourists, outpacing Chicago, which had 54.1 million, and Philadelphia, which welcomed 42 million.
• New York City boasts more than 39,800 acres of parkland, compared to roughly 12,900 in Chicago and 10,800 in Philadelphia.
• Each City provides different types and levels of service for its residents. In FY 2016, New York City spent over $10,800 per resident, while Philadelphia spent about $4,100 and Chicago spent $2,700.