62,000 New Yorkers Answer NYC Speaks Survey, Weighing in on Critical City Government Issues

Rigorous outreach efforts by NYC Speaks and its coalition of government and civic partners has paid off: the NYC Speaks survey surpassed its 50,000 goal by achieving over 62,000 responses in total, including approximately 43,600 responses from adult New Yorkers and 18,400 responses from New Yorkers aged 14-17.

Preliminary analysis of the responses shows that the NYC Speaks survey reached a diverse and representative selection of New Yorkers. The survey received responses in all eleven languages available and across every residential zip code in the city. 27% of respondents were Black, 14% were Asian, and 29% were Hispanic, in line with the respective percentages of the population overall. In addition, 33% of respondents were white. Every age group above 18 and every income bracket responded to the adult survey.

This citywide survey is the first phase of the six-month NYC Speaks civic engagement initiative, which seeks input from everyday New Yorkers to inform the policies and priorities of the new mayoral administration. The survey was open for four weeks, introduced during the weekend of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day and ending on February 11, 2022. While the initial NYC Speaks survey was open only to New York City residents aged 18 and over, it was quickly followed by the NYC Youth Speaks survey, adapted for high school students and promoted in classrooms by the NYC Department of Education (NYC DOE).

The NYC Speaks survey was made for New Yorkers, by New Yorkers. The survey was developed in partnership with 80+ Civic Policy Council members from across the five boroughs who helped develop research questions, refine the survey instrument, and distribute the survey through their networks.

All along, NYC Speaks has focused on driving participation in communities that are too often left out of decision making processes and shaped by disparities. Outreach efforts included deploying more than 150 on-the-ground canvassers in partnership with over 18 community-based organizations throughout the 33 priority neighborhoods of the City’s Taskforce on Racial Inclusion and Equity. Agency outreach spearheaded by Deputy Mayor Sheena Wright’s team also was instrumental to our outreach strategies. Agencies who supported with survey outreach include: the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA), Department of Veterans Services (DVS), Department of Probation (DOP), the Mayor’s Public Engagement Unit (PEU), the Community Affairs Unit, The Civic Engagement Commission/DemocracyNYC (CEC/DNYC), Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs (MOIA), The Mayor’s Office for Community and Ethnic Media, The Mayor’s Office of Operations, Department for the Aging, Department of Citywide Administrative Services, NYC Service, Administration for Children’s Services, The Racial Justice Commission, and the Taxi and Limousine Service was made a huge impact on the results of the survey.

In the next several weeks, NYC Speaks will release more detailed analysis of the survey results. This will include the results of 27 policy questions across ten issue areas crucial to New Yorkers: health & wellbeing, housing & neighborhoods, economy & workforce, racial equity, climate & infrastructure, education & youth development, public safety, gender justice, and civic engagement.

The results of the survey will also be used to launch the second, more qualitative phase of the NYC Speaks initiative: Community Conversations. These events will invite New Yorkers to discuss the NYC Speaks survey data to deepen the conversation on priorities, policies, and programs that the Adams administration can include in its budgeting and strategic planning. Community Conversations will also serve as an opportunity to increase civic knowledge and inform residents about city powers and budgeting processes. In June, the quantitative and qualitative data will come together in Action Planning Workshops with experts and community leaders, and will be used to create the final NYC Speaks Action Plan: a tangible course of government action based on insight, feedback, and collaboration—a blueprint to build a stronger, more thriving city.