NYC Often Over or Under-Budgets for Snow Removal, Spent $57 Million in 2020

By Yehudit Garmaise 

  The city only saw 4.8 inches of snow last winter, but the City of New York Department of Sanitation (DSNY) paid $57 million, or $12 million per inch, for its removal, and that astronomical amount might not even be enough if 2021 sees blizzards ahead, analysts say.

   Whether the city sees increased snowfall, or not, however, the city has to spend the same amount of money to prepare for snow removal, analyst Daniel Huber told the New York Post. 

    The Sanitation Department has to prepare and repair snowplows, train drivers for the plows, and buy large amount of salt to reduce the dangers of slippery streets, Huber said, whether New York City’s winters are mild or fierce. 

   Other additional costs are ice storms, which require even more salt than just snowstorms; weekend whiteouts, which require the city to pay DSNY workers overtime; and other DSNY wage increases.

    Higher salt and fuel prices also have contributed to the rising costs of snow removal in the city, which sometimes has to go into debt to cover unexpected snowfall. 

    Huber also said that although the DSNY’s budget for snow removal sounds astronomical, the city usually under-estimates how much it will spend on plowing the city’s streets. 

   In 2011, for instance, when the city allocated $39 million for snow removal, after 61.9 inches of snow blanketed Central Park, DSNY ended up spending $125 million, or $2 million per inch, on snow removal. 

   The city so often under-budgets for snow removal because the City Charter requires that each year, the DSNY spends an amount of that equals an average of the previous five years, a rule that does not account for rising prices of salt and fuel and increased wages of DSNY workers. 

   Due to the City Charter’s five-year average formula, 2021’s DSNY budget for snow removal is $101 million, which worries experts that increased flurries can send DSNY back into the red.