Contact: Colleen Roche (212) 788-2958
The Deputy Mayor for Operations oversees the day-to-day operations of City government, directing the City's relations with Federal, State and local agencies, and acting as the Mayor's chief liaison with elected officials. In the Mayor's absence, the Deputy Mayor for Operations has the authority to act on the Mayor's behalf.
"Joe Lhota has been an outstanding Budget Director and a key player in helping this Administration turn the City around," Mayor Giuliani said. " Joe is perfectly suited to take on this challenging job. As Deputy Mayor for Operations, Joe will be able to draw on the knowledge he has gained in dealing closely with every City agency and commissioner, in the relationships he has established with the City Council, Albany and Washington and in effectively managing the third largest budget in the nation. Joe is a strong manager, a tough -- but fair -- negotiator and an effective communicator. I look forward to working closely with him in this new capacity."
Since his appointment as Budget Director in November 1995, Mr. Lhota has managed the City's operating and capital budgets and introduced several private sector management techniques to City government. During his tenure, the City has restrained the growth in City spending below the rate of inflation and significantly reduced the out year financial gaps, policies that have produced the two largest operating surpluses in the City's history.
Mr. Lhota also drew on his investment banking experience in managing the City's global capital borrowing efforts and working closely with rating agencies, investment banking firms, legal advisors, institutional investors and auditors. Last year, he was instrumental in winning approval from Albany for the establishment of the Transitional Finance Authority, which raised the City's borrowing cap and avoided a serious financial problem for the City.
Mr. Lhota joined the Administration in 1994 as Chief of Staff to Deputy Mayor for Finance and Economic Development John Dyson. In January 1995, Mayor Giuliani appointed him Commissioner of the Department of Finance where he served until his appointment as Budget Director.
Prior to his municipal service, Mr. Lhota spent 15 years in investment banking where he specialized in municipal finance. He served as Director of Public Finance at First Boston and as a Managing Director of the Municipal Securities Group at Paine Webber Incorporated.
Mr. Lhota, 44, graduated cum laude from Georgetown University, where he earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in Business Administration. He also holds a Masters of Business Administration from the Harvard Business School.
He and his wife, Tamra, reside in Brooklyn Heights with their seven-year- old daughter, Kathryn. Mr. Lhota is not the first member of his family to serve the people of the City of New York. His father is a retired New York City Police Department lieutenant, his paternal grandfather was a New York City firefighter, and his maternal grandfather was a taxi driver.