To judge from the happy talk coming from City Hall and Albany, these are Gotham’s golden days. The pols point to sky-high budgets — investments, they call them — as proof they are fighting to make New York better than ever.
To which the public responds: Liars, liars, pants on fire!
New Yorkers, it turns out, see life in the five boroughs as bad and getting worse. Much worse.
That’s the resounding message from a huge survey of city residents conducted by the private Citizens Budget Commission.
The findings amount to a thumbs-down response to our government overlords by painting a dismal view of the quality of life.
Even allowing for the fact that New Yorkers are renowned, world-class complainers, the survey offers almost nothing for elected officials to cheer.
No matter how you slice it, it’s not a pretty picture.
‘Good’ grief
A few highlights, er, lowlights:
- Only 30% of respondents rate the quality of life as excellent or good, down from 51% in 2017 and 2008.
- Only 24% rate the quality of government services good or excellent, down from 44% in 2017.
- Only 11% believe the government is spending tax dollars wisely, down from 21% in 2017.