Wall Street’s securities industry bonus pool reached a record $49.2 billion in 2025, up 9% from the previous year, while the average bonus rose 6% to $246,900.The increases reflect a rise of more than 30% in Wall Street’s profits, which totaled $65.1 billion in 2025.
New York City’s $127 billion fiscal year 2027 preliminary budget (February Plan) provides more transparency for spending, addressing years of chronic underbudgeting and exposing an emerging structural budget gap that may require choices that threaten the city’s fiscal stability, competitiveness and affordability.
Seven villages were designated in fiscal stress under the Fiscal Stress Monitoring System (FSMS) for their fiscal year ending in 2025. One village was designated in “significant fiscal stress,” four in “moderate fiscal stress,” and two as “susceptible to fiscal stress.”
This report details how vital small businesses are to New York’s economy, generating nearly $1 trillion in sales and revenues with more than 3.7 million employees at over 422,000 establishments in 2023. New York ranked fourth among states in the number of small businesses and third behind California and Florida for its share of small businesses, but trailed the rest of the country in some key metrics, including small business creation and employment.
This report uses federal-state employment and wage data, as well as occupational data and industry outlooks, to discuss the distribution of jobs by industry sector in New York State and the impact that some of the largest sectors have had on 21st-century jobs in the state’s nine economic development regions outside of New York City.
New York City’s Department for the Aging is facing rising demand for home care and case management services that help older residents remain independent, resulting in a growing waitlist for assistance. This report highlights challenges such as funding uncertainty that may affect the agency’s ability to meet increasing needs.
This report examines New York City’s expanded efforts to address the rise in it’s unsheltered (street homeless) population. The analysis recommends the City make better use of data collected through outreach, placement, and service programs to more clearly show where it has been most effective at helping people move into permanent housing. It also highlights the need to improve the efficiency of shelter placements as funding for street homeless programs is projected to remain largely flat after Fiscal Year 2026.
The long-term decline in the number of individuals in State prisons has led to a demographic shift towards an older incarcerated population and necessitates increased attention to policies and costs associated with this population. This report reviews demographic changes in New York’s prison population, changes in prison admission trends and recent policy changes that impact the level of incarceration in the State.
This analysis of the proposed Executive Budget warns that the trajectory of projected State spending is estimated to increase at a rate faster than expected revenues, creating cumulative outyear budget gaps estimated by the Division of Budget to total $27.5 billion through SFY 2030 while reserves remain stagnant. Actions taken in Washington, including federal reductions in aid, create increased fiscal strains that are likely to affect the State’s economy, finances and safety net, necessitating increased caution when developing a spending plan.
New York’s Tuition Assistance Program (TAP) has not kept pace with inflation or rising tuition costs since the 2008-09 academic year. Undergraduate TAP recipients dropped by 77,000 (21%), with steep declines among two-year programs (45%), private-sector schools (40%), and the lowest income households (38%). Recent State actions to expand eligibility for TAP helped lead to an increase in TAP beneficiaries in AY 2024-25; however, continued attention to the program is critical as students face mounting debt levels and federal support is reduced.
