Even as City Hall describes parts of its spending plan as “actions of last resort,” Mayor Zohran Mamdani is steering millions into an expanding “racial equity” bureaucracy and six-figure diversity positions.
To finance the $127 billion agenda, the plan carries steep trade-offs — higher taxes on wealthy residents and corporations, a potential 9.5% property tax increase if state lawmakers decline to act and a 5,000-officer reduction in the New York City Police Department’s ranks.
Mamdani’s budget is far from inconsequential. In a city of nearly 9 million people that represents the center of global finance, his sweeping progressive agenda isn’t just a local policy shift. It’s a high-stakes experiment that could reshape the nation’s largest economy.
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Under Mamdani’s plan, the city’s Office of Racial Equity would receive $5.6 million annually, while the Commission on Racial Equity would be allocated $4.6 million, a combined total of $10.2 million. The new figure represents roughly a $3 million increase — or about a 42% jump — from the approximately $7.2 million allocated last year.
Together, the allocations support a growing racial equity apparatus within City Hall. The Office of Racial Equity, which employs a staff of 38, serves as the administration’s operational arm, coordinating and implementing racial equity policies across agencies.
The Commission on Racial Equity, made up of 16 paid roles, functions as a separate advisory and analytical body, conducting research, developing recommendations and providing oversight related to racial equity policy.
Beyond the $10.2 million allocated to the Office and Commission on Racial Equity, the budget also funds several high-level diversity positions across city agencies.
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The Department of Education budgets more than $260,000 for a chief diversity officer. Meanwhile, at the fire department, three civilian chief diversity inclusion officer positions are funded at just over $301,000 in combined salaries, along with nearly $230,000 in associated overtime, bringing the civilian unit’s total to about $531,000.
The FDNY also funds a separate uniformed chief diversity inclusion officer position at just over $118,000, pushing the department’s total diversity leadership allocation to roughly $649,000.
Additionally, the city will funnel more than $835,000 for the Commission on Gender Equity, an advisory body solely dedicated to analyzing legislation and developing public positions on gender-based equality.
Mamdani’s office did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
