By Kate King 

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio presented an $89.06 billion executive budget proposal Thursday, representing a spending increase of nearly $4 billion that the mayor said he is confident the city can afford.

The plan would raise spending about 4.5% over this year's adopted $85.24 billion budget. Labor, debt service and education spending are driving most of the increase, with the proposed budget adding an estimated 1,700 city jobs, city officials said.

"We have been adamant that we have to achieve progressive change through a fiscally responsible paradigm," Mr. de Blasio, a Democrat, said at a budget presentation to reporters.

City coffers saw a $973 million jump in tax revenue in recent months, which the mayor described as a welcome but "one-time" windfall. Most of that revenue -- about $600 million -- came from money that was repatriated from overseas under two federal laws: the tax overhaul that President Donald Trump signed in December and 2008 legislation that closed loopholes for hedge funds, city officials said.

The proposed budget includes an additional $103 million in capital funds to install over 3,000 permanent security barriers to protect pedestrians in the city's most heavily-trafficked areas. The city also plans to spend $20 million over the next two fiscal years to eliminate an estimated 50,000 work-order backlog at New York City Housing Authority facilities.

The proposal would fund city services for fiscal year 2019, which begins July 1. The mayor will now negotiate with the city council, which must approve a final spending package by June 30.

City Council Speaker Corey Johnson, who took the post in January, said he would like to see the revenue windfall go toward boosting the city's reserves, funding a reduced-fare MetroCard program for low-income New Yorkers and providing a property tax rebate to middle-class homeowners, according to a joint statement he released with Finance Chair Daniel Dromm and Vanessa Gibson, chair of the subcommittee on capital budget.

"This revenue has the potential to go a long way towards our goals of strengthening the social safety net, fighting for the middle class, and being responsible with taxpayer money," the council members said.

The mayor and speaker have already agreed on increasing spending in at least one area, announcing on Wednesday they would boost funding for a major source of aid for the city's schools by $125 million. The additional money, which brings the city's Fair Student Funding budget to $6.2 billion next year, would largely help high-need schools that have many students who are poor, bilingual or have other special needs.

Write to Kate King at Kate.King@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

April 26, 2018 19:34 ET (23:34 GMT)