NYC Council Speaker Menin Supports Pied-à-Terre Tax, Calls for Cuts to Education Consulting Contracts

Menin agrees with Mayor Mamdani on pied-à-terre tax, but says city still needs to find budget savings elsewhere.

Apr. 19, 2026 at 8:23pm

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New York City Council Speaker Julie Menin expressed support for Governor Kathy Hochul's proposed pied-à-terre tax, a surcharge on homes worth over $5 million owned by non-residents. Menin said the tax makes sense as the city faces a budget deficit, though she stopped short of endorsing wider tax hikes on the wealthy. Menin also called for the city to find savings by cutting consulting contracts within the Department of Education, which consumes a large portion of the city's $112 billion budget.

Why it matters

The relationship between the City Council and the mayor's office is often a delicate balance, and Menin's comments show both alignment and divergence with Mayor Zohran Mamdani's agenda. The pied-à-terre tax is a key revenue-raising proposal, but Menin's focus on cutting education consulting contracts suggests a desire to find savings elsewhere in the budget rather than relying solely on tax increases.

The details

Menin, the City Council's first Jewish speaker, has presided over an activist body that introduced a record 1,200 bills in her first 100 days. She said her relationship with Mayor Mamdani is still a work in progress, but the two agree on the pied-à-terre tax. Menin supports the tax as a way to address the city's budget deficit, while Mamdani campaigned on taxing the rich. However, Menin stopped short of endorsing wider tax hikes, citing concerns about high-earning residents leaving for states like Texas and Florida. Instead, Menin suggested the city could find savings by cutting the $12 billion in consulting contracts within the $40 billion Department of Education budget.

  • Menin became NYC Council Speaker in January 2026.
  • Hochul proposed the pied-à-terre tax in early 2026.

The players

Julie Menin

The first Jewish speaker of the New York City Council, presiding over an activist body that has introduced a record number of bills.

Zohran Mamdani

The mayor of New York City, who campaigned on a platform of taxing the rich and governing as a democratic socialist.

Kathy Hochul

The governor of New York, who has proposed a pied-à-terre tax as a way to raise revenue for the state.

Donald Trump

The former president of the United States, who criticized the pied-à-terre tax proposal on social media, likely because he owns a multi-million dollar home on Fifth Avenue in New York City.

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What they’re saying

“It think it makes sense because we do have a budget deficit, and so we do need to do something about that, and that is a revenue raiser that would really affect those who aren't living in New York City.”

— Julie Menin, New York City Council Speaker

“DESTROYING New York. TAX, TAX, TAX Policies are SO WRONG!”

— Donald Trump

What’s next

The New York State legislature will need to approve the pied-à-terre tax proposal before it can be implemented. The city will also need to conduct audits of the Department of Education's consulting contracts to identify potential savings.

The takeaway

The tension between the City Council and the mayor's office is a delicate balance, with Menin and Mamdani finding common ground on the pied-à-terre tax but diverging on the approach to the city's budget challenges. Menin's focus on cutting education consulting contracts suggests a desire to find savings across the budget rather than relying solely on tax increases, even as the city faces a deficit.