A last-minute deal at City Hall will prevent major cuts to NYC libraries and return all three public library systems to seven days a week, officials announced.
Following months of public outcry and protests, news broke Thursday of a deal to prevent a proposal to further slash millions to the city budget and cripple libraries.
According to joint statement from the City Council speaker and mayor's office, a deal was reached to restore more than $58 million for the libraries in the 2025 budget.
“The Council has consistently championed funding restorations for these institutions as a top priority, and we’re proud to reach an agreement with Mayor Adams and the Administration to successfully secure these critical investments for them in the city budget," Speaker Adrienne Adams said in a statement.
The proposed cuts were expected to be bracing to the libraries, which already had their budgets slashed last year, resulting in the loss of Sunday operations. Now, thanks to the latest deal, ongoing services are expected to remain in place and libraries will be back open on Sundays.
The Adams administration proposal to cut millions more from the budget was met with immediate pushback. Regular protests across the city were held for months, and some of the most vocal criticism came from the libraries themselves.
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The NYPL X account had posted countless memes calling for the budget restoration, and at some points even calling out the mayor by name.
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The city's budget will reportedly be voted on this coming weekend, just in time to meet their June 30 deadline.
The joint statement from Speaker Adams and Mayor Eric Adams also promised another $53 million to be restored to cultural institutions through the Cultural Institutions Group and Cultural Development Fund recipients.
