Mayor Eric Adams declared Monday that he feels “excellent” as he returned to City Hall after holing up in Gracie Mansion all last week after testing positive for COVID-19.
“Excellent, excellent,” the mayor told a Post photographer when asked how he was feeling after walking up the City Hall steps while holding a black plastic bag.
Asked if he was glad to emerge from isolation, a masked-up Adams replied, “I feel like Kotter.”
“Welcome back, Kotter,” he quipped with a chuckle, referencing the 1970s ABC sitcom about a high school teacher in Brooklyn.
Adams — who was forced to update New Yorkers on Tuesday’s subway shooting in Brooklyn while isolating in the mayor’s residence on the Upper East Side — then evaded a question about if he would release his tax returns.
“Ah, I may make up my mind,” he told The City reporter Katie Honan while making a shrug-like gesture.
“I love the idea of showing my taxes,” Adams added before walking to his office.
Adams’ vague response came days after he refused to guarantee that he would release his federal and state tax returns, indicating he may break with decades of precedent.
“I will comply with whatever rules are in place,” Adams told reporters during an unrelated press conference on Friday.
When asked directly if he would commit to providing his taxes, he replied, “No, you can’t.”
The forms could provide insight into Adams’ finances and earnings after reports published during the 2021 Democratic mayoral primary claimed that he failed to properly report rental property income.
While city elected officials are not required to release their tax filings, every Big Apple mayor since Ed Koch has provided partial or complete copies of their income tax statements, according to contemporaneous reporting and ethics experts.