De Blasio Budget Gaps ‘Credit Negative,’ Moody’s Says
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New York Mayor Bill de Blasio’s budget is “credit negative” because it increases the city’s projected deficits by more than $5 billion over three years to pay for union wage increases, Moody’s Investors Service said.
The $73.9 billion spending plan proposed last week includes the costs for an agreement de Blasio struck with the city’s 110,000-member teachers union May 1 that raised pay by 10 percentage points through fiscal 2018. It also projects that other unions with outstanding contracts will strike similar deals under a system called pattern bargaining, according to the New York-based ratings company.