Mamdani wonders how to get funds to honor free bus commitment
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Throughout his campaign, New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani promised free bus rides for residents of the Big Apple – but now that he has won the election, he faces the practical problem of securing the funding needed to implement such a policy, and it is unclear whether he will ever be able to keep his promise.
PIX11’s Dan Mannarino pressed on how Mamdani plans to secure the money for the proposal if New York Gov. Kathy Hochul isn’t in favor of raising taxes.
Mamdani estimated that the “clearest ways” to get that money would be to raise the state’s corporate tax or impose the income tax on people who earn more than $1 million a year. But he added that “the most important fact is that we fund it, the question is not how we do it, but that we do it.”
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Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani is seen on November 20, 2025 in New York. (BG048/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images via Getty Images)
At Mamdani’s campaign presented proposals including “Increase the state’s top corporate tax rate to 11.5 percent” and “Add a 2 percent New York income tax on anyone earning more than $1 million a year.”
The self-described democratic socialist has touted his free bus policy as a key part of his Big Apple mayoral campaign.
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But when Mannarino asked Hochul earlier this year if she would support tax hikes, Gov. Kathy Hochul slap the idea, saying it “doesn’t raise people’s taxes at a time when affordability is the biggest issue.”
NY GOVERNOR POURS COLD WATER ON MAMDANI FREE BUS PLAN
New York Governor Kathy Hochul speaks at a press briefing about progress in combating retail theft after state police recovered more than $2.6 million in stolen goods from City Point’s Brooklyn Made Market. (Lev Radin/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images)
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“Free buses are an investment in our people and our economy, helping workers, small businesses and all New Yorkers who deserve a more connected city,” Mamdani said Thursday. job on X.
