New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani has decided to appeal a court order mandating the expansion of the city's housing voucher program, a move that contradicts his campaign promises and has drawn criticism from homeless advocacy groups.

The court order requires the city to expand its CityFHEPS (City Fighting Homelessness and Eviction Prevention Supplement) program, which assists people in shelters or at risk of homelessness in securing permanent housing. Mamdani had previously pledged during his campaign to implement such housing assistance programs.

The mayor cited financial concerns as the primary reason for the appeal, pointing to the city's current $5.4 billion budget deficit. The cost of expanding the housing voucher program would add significant expenses to the city's already strained finances.

Meanwhile, business leaders have expressed concerns about Mamdani's proposed tax increases on corporations and wealthy individuals. The head of a prominent corporate advocacy group claims that more New York City-based firms are considering relocating to lower-cost states in response to the mayor's tax proposals.

Despite these business concerns, some indicators suggest the city's commercial real estate market has shown improvement under Mamdani's leadership, with office real estate metrics trending upward since he took office.