Mayor Mamdani and Speaker Menin Expand Discretionary Grant Pilot to Get City Funds to 800 Nonprofits Within 30 Days
New York City is located in New York State. New York City Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani and City Council Speaker Julie Menin announced in October the expansion of the Council Discretionary Grant Pilot, a streamlined approach that eliminates nine steps from the traditional discretionary contracting process and gets City funding to community-based nonprofits up to nine months faster. The expansion will include more City agencies and providers with expiring multi-year discretionary contracts, allowing up to 800 community-based nonprofits to receive 100% of their awards within 30 days after both the grantee and agency sign the grant agreement.
"Non-profits play a critical role in educating young New Yorkers, supporting older adults and providing the community programs that makes New York City special. Our city government must work tirelessly to pay them quickly and efficiently so they can continue providing these essential services without disruption," said Mayor Mamdani. Speaker Menin said nonprofits in all five boroughs deliver essential services New Yorkers need, but face severe bureaucratic challenges that impede service delivery and keep them from being paid on time.
"New York City government depends on its nonprofit partners to deliver vital services to New Yorkers, but for too long it has not consistently upheld its end of the bargain to pay them on time and in full," said City Comptroller Mark Levine, calling the effort a real victory for providers who often operate with limited cash flow. MOCS Director and Chief Procurement Officer Kim L. Yu said the pilot streamlines one of the most frustrating parts of city contracting so that small awards can be processed in under three months on average.
During FY 2026, the pilot disbursed $1 million to more than 100 providers, who received funding approximately 300% faster — on average in three months compared to the more than 12 months required under the traditional contracting process. For FY 2027, nonprofits may qualify if they are awarded a cumulative total of $25,000 or less from Mayoral agencies, including NYC Aging, the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, DSS/HRA, the Department of Veterans Services, DYCD, HPD and SBS, among others.
The Mamdani administration, City Council and contracting agencies will identify participating organizations for FY 2027 in the coming days based on award amounts and clearance status. Grant agreements will be issued in November 2026, participating organizations will have 30 days to return signed agreements, and payments will be issued in late 2026 or early 2027. According to the City, discretionary contracts account for nearly 70% of the human services contract backlog; earlier this year the administration committed to moving Council discretionary awards from procurements to grants.
(Source: NYC Mayor's Office official)
Source: NYC Mayor's Office official
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图片来源：Wikimedia Commons，Nielsoncaetanosalmeron 摄，CC BY 4.0 授权（纽约市政厅实景）
