Less than a week after the election, Gov. Kathy Hochul appears to be slowly squashing one of Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani’s big campaign promises: Fare-free buses in NYC.
Hochul endorsed Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani shortly before he won the historic 2025 NYC mayoral election on Nov. 4. But during the SOMOS organization’s political conference in Puerto Rico over the weekend, Hochul seemed to put a pin into the balloon of Mamdani’s free bus concept, stating that it would jeopardize the funding of New York’s public transit system.
“I cannot set forth a plan right now that takes money out of a system that relies on the fares of the buses and the subways. But can we find a path to make it more affordable for people who need help? Of course, we can,” Hochul said during a press conference during Somos, a social-political event held in Puerto Rico last week.
Meanwhile, Jen Goodman, a spokesperson for the governor, told amNewYork that Hochul and Mamdani are committed to “delivering an affordability agenda” for New York’s working families.
“The governor is focused on achieving universal child care and will continue to have ongoing conversations on other proposals, including making transit more accessible and affordable, while ensuring the MTA has the resources it needs to serve New Yorkers,” Goodman said.
Hochul has already invested in the MTA’s $68.4 billion capital plan for infrastructure and subway safety improvements. She, along with MTA officials, has also invested in fare evasion prevention strategies on city buses and subways, a scourge that contributes nearly $1 billion in revenue loss for the state-run transportation agency.
In 2022, the MTA lost $315 million in bus fare evasion alone.
Throughout his campaign, Mamdani made it clear that he wants to raise taxes on corporations and the “wealthiest” of New Yorkers to pay for free buses. However, Hochul — who is running for re-election in 2026 — has remained steadfast in her commitment not to raise taxes, which would likely cut short any plans the Mayor-elect has for his ambitious transit agenda.
amNewYork contacted Mamdani’s office to ask how he would pay for fare-free buses in NYC without a tax hike, and is awaiting a response.
Mamdani, who overwhelmingly won the mayoral election this year, will take office on Jan. 1. Much of his ambitious agenda hinges on a state increase in the corporate tax rate to match New Jersey’s 11.5%, which he claims will generate $5 billion for the city.
Despite the new mayor’s wishes, any tax increase would require the approval of the state Legislature and the governor. The city cannot raise taxes unilaterally.
The new mayor also supports a flat 2% tax on individual New Yorkers who earn over $1 million per year to fund the services he promised, including not only free buses but also free childcare and government-run grocery stores. New York state already has the highest top income tax rate in the country.
While Hochul appears unwilling to budge on a tax hike, the Mayor-elect appears to have at least some support from the politicians in charge of the state Assembly and Senate, Speaker Carl Heastie and Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, respectively — both of whom endorsed Mamdani’s mayoral bid.
“It’s November. It’s still kinda early. We gotta see how things fit inside of the state budget,” Heastie said in a NY1 News article. “But I think there’s a willingness. I don’t want to speak for the other two partners in this. But we want Zohran, the mayor-elect, to be successful.”
Stewart-Cousins said in a statement following Mamdani’s mayoral win last week that his victory marks a “moment of progress” for NYC, adding that she will “advance an affordability agenda” with him.
“Affordability is the issue that unites us all, and it’s one the Senate Majority has long prioritized,” she said. “This is an exciting time for New York City and New York state, and we look forward to working closely with Mayor-elect Mamdani to advance an affordability agenda that makes our city and state more livable for working families and the middle class.”
According to the city’s Independent Budget Office, fare-free buses on the city’s more than 200 local routes would likely cost around $652 million a year.
Meanwhile, the MTA’s John McCarthy, in a statement to amNewYork, said it is important to “take a hard look” at any major change in the transit system.
“For example, why is congestion pricing successful? Because we took the time to study its benefits and impacts,” he said. “By the time the first camera turned on, we had understood – and prepared for – every potential impact of the policy. That’s how we deliver on major changes. This proposal would demand the same kind of rigorous analysis, and we’d start by putting it through its paces.”
