PSC is grateful to the New York City Council for prioritizing CUNY in its response to the Mayor’s Preliminary FY26 Budget. After three consecutive years of budget cuts to the University from Mayor Adams, our members and students have relied on Speaker Adams, Finance Chair Brannan, Higher Education Chair Dinowitz, and the Council to help rebuild enrollment and supplement funding for CUNY’s faculty and staff. Under the Speaker’s leadership, this Council FY26 response again lifts the work of our members and addresses the dire needs of CUNY. It proposes restoration of PEG cuts that have devastated our community colleges ($90 million); expansion of the incredibly successful CUNY Reconnect program ($11.8 million), which has helped 33,000 students to re-enroll and graduated 8,500 student since its launch three years ago; and investments in successful programs like ASAP ($76.6 million) and ACE ($15 million) that support students more effectively on the path to degree completion than those students not in the program. Additionally, it is gratifying to see the Council respond to the collective voice of the union, students and the administration with the inclusion of $500,000 for a commuting program that would allow 473 students access to free public transportation.
We look forward to fighting for continued increase in enrollment at CUNY and additional investment of resources from the city that it deserves. More information about PSC’s FY26 budget platform is here.
Published: April 4, 2025
