The Civic Issue
NYC is legally mandated to close Rikers Island by 2027, but the four replacement borough-based jails won't be finished until 2029-2032. Fifteen people died in NYC jails in 2025, and conditions remain dangerous — understaffing, violence, and health failures persist. The closure plan, originally estimated at $8.7B, has ballooned in cost while timelines slip.
Headline Spending
$1.96B
identifiable in budget
Budget Lines (Adopted)
$1.53B
12 lines
Vendor Spending
$33.2M
8 vendors
| Line | Adopted | Spent |
|---|---|---|
Headquarters OPERATIONS | $455.1M | $94.6M |
Rose M. Singer Center NYC DOC JAIL OPERATIONS - PS | $414.0M | $531.4M |
MANAGEMENT & BUDGET- OTPS ADMINISTRATION - OTPS | $102.5M | $68.4M |
ADMINISTRATION OPERATIONS - OTPS | $92.9M | $35.3M |
PROGRAMS NYC DOC HEALTH AND PROGRAMS - PS | $53.7M | $21.2M |
NUTRITIONAL SERVICES NYC DOC JAIL OPERATIONS - OTPS | $48.2M | $24.7M |
14 POINT PLAN - IDLENESS REDUCTION NYC DOC HEALTH AND PROGRAMS - OTPS | $33.2M | $1.8M |
CORRECTION ACADEMY STAFF TRAINING - PS | $10.8M | $15.4M |
DEPARTMENT WIDE FACILITY MAINTENANCE OPERATIONS - OTPS | $12.4M | $36.7M |
Correctional Health Services H+H LUMP SUM | $295.3M | $271.4M |
Borough Based Jail Program DDC DESIGN & ENGINEERING PS | $6.1M | $3.9M |
EXEC/ADMIN STAFF Board of Correction | $4.1M | $2.1M |
| LAGUARDIA CORPORATE CENTER ASSOCIATES LLC | $7.3M | 17 txns |
| KEEFE GROUP LLC | $7.0M | 154 txns |
| SECURUS TECHNOLOGIES LLC | $3.9M | 10 txns |
| CORRECTION OFFICERS BENEVOLENT ASSOCIATION | $3.6M | 8 txns |
| THE REMI GROUP LLC | $2.9M | 19 txns |
| TAMCO MECHANICAL, INC. | $2.8M | 16 txns |
| NEW YORK POWER AUTHORITY | $3.9M | 4 txns |
| BANDUJO ADVERTISING AND DESIGN, INC | $1.8M | 4 txns |
Total Identifiable Spending
$1.96B ($1.21B DOC operating + $749.6M DOC capital + $295.3M H+H Correctional Health adopted + $6.1M DDC + $4.1M Board of Correction)
DOC's $1.21B adopted budget funds the entire jail system, with the single largest line being "Rose M. Singer Center" at $414M for jail operations payroll — this covers all facilities, not just RMSC. Capital spending of $749.6M in FY2026 is dominated by replacement jail construction: Tutor Perini alone received $536.3M across two entities (the largest single-vendor payment in the entire city budget). H+H's Correctional Health Services ($295M adopted, $311M modified) provides all inmate healthcare — a cost that rises as conditions deteriorate and lawsuits multiply. The "14 Point Plan - Idleness Reduction" line ($33.2M adopted but only $1.8M cash) suggests reform programming is heavily underspent relative to appropriation.
The $749.6M capital spending cannot be attributed to specific jail sites (Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, Manhattan) because all construction flows through one department code (400-072-228). The total project cost ($8.7B+ estimated) spans multiple fiscal years — FY2026 capital represents one year of a multi-year construction program. Legal costs from the federal monitor, consent decrees, and lawsuits are embedded in DOC's administrative budget and cannot be isolated. The "pollution remediation" category ($201M to Tutor Perini) likely reflects environmental cleanup at Rikers-adjacent sites or replacement jail sites.
Key Context
The 2019 law mandates Rikers closure by 2027. Four replacement borough-based jails (Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens) are under construction but face delays — completion now expected 2029-2032. The daily jail population (~5,700 in 2025) is far below peak (22,000+ in the 1990s) but still exceeds the ~3,300 capacity of the replacement jails. Tutor Perini's $536M in FY2026 payments makes it the single largest construction contractor in the city's budget. The Board of Correction's $4.1M oversight budget is 0.2% of the total DOC/H+H spending it monitors. At roughly $556K per detainee per year (total spending / ~5,700 population), NYC jails are among the most expensive in the world.