Chair Ariola delivers opening remarks on FDNY budget priorities
Chair Ariola delivers opening remarks focusing on EMS pay increases, the fifth firefighter initiative, and critical infrastructure improvements, noting deferred maintenance is a moral and public safety issue. She demands clear answers and timelines from the administration.
Thank you, Chair.
Good afternoon and welcome to the Fiscal Year 2027 Executive Budget Hearing for the New York City Fire Department.
I am Councilmember Joann-Ariola and I am Chair of the Committee on Fire and Emergency Management.
Today, this committee is holding a hearing for one reason, and that is to get answers.
We are here to understand whether this budget truly reflects the needs of the brave men and women of the FDNY and whether the promises that have been made to firefighters, EMS personnel, and the people of the City of New York are being fulfilled.
Among the issues we'll examine today are EMS pay increases, the long overdue implementation of the fifth firefighter, and the status of critical infrastructure improvements throughout the department.
For years, our EMS members have been asked to do more with less.
They answer hundreds of thousands of calls annually, provide live
saving medical care under extraordinary circumstances and serve in an indispensable part of our emergency response system.
Yet they continue to be compensated at levels that fail to reflect the value of their work.
We need answers about what steps are being taken to achieve fair pay for these workers and how this administration intends to recruit and retain the next generation of EMS professionals.
We will also once again discuss the need for the fifth firefighter on engine companies.
which, as we all know, is not a luxury.
It is a safety issue.
Every second matters in a fire, and every firefighter deserves the staffing levels necessary to perform their duties safely and effectively.
The question before us is simple.
What concrete steps are being taken to move this initiative forward?
And finally, we must address the condition of the department's facilities.
In 2025, the FCMY publicly stated that approximately $940 million had been allocated for capital improvement to firehouses and related infrastructure.
Yet, as we review the city's financial plans, many of these projects appear to have been pushed further and further into the out years, in some cases extending through 2035.
New Yorkers deserve
to know why.
Our firefighters are willingly putting their lives on the line every day.
They run into burning buildings while others are running out.
They work through natural disasters, emergencies, and tragedies without hesitation.
They never ask for anything and rarely complain about the conditions they are left with at the firehouse.
At the very least, the city can do is ensure they return to firehouses that are safe, modern, and fit for the men and women who serve there.
No firefighter should be forced to eat, sleep, work in facilities plagued by leaking roofs, apparatus floors ready to collapse, and deteriorating conditions because of long-delayed repairs.
Deferred maintenance is not merely a budget issue.
It is a quality of life issue, a moral issue, and ultimately a public safety issue.
Today, this committee expects clear answers, clear timelines, and clear commitments.
The FDNY is the most respected department in the world.
The fire department, EMTs, paramedics, and civilian personnel who serve this city deserve an administration that keeps their promises.
I would like to thank our committee staff for their hard work, financial analyst Tanvir Singh, assistant director Jack Story, committee counsel Josh Kingsley,
policy analyst Will Hongash, and my amazing chief of staff Phyllis Insarillo.
I would like to welcome and thank Commissioner Bonsignor and our firefighters, EMTs, paramedics, and the department's civilian staff for the work that you do.
I look forward to a candid and productive discussion, and I thank the Commissioner and the Department for the leadership and for appearing here before us today.