Gov. Kathy Hochul said she’s keeping families with young kids at the center of her political agenda this year, vowing to make child care universal and affordable across New York.
During her State of the State speech on Tuesday, the Democrat and first governor who is also a mom, pledged a series of investments to expand low cost child care options for children under 5, including her promise last week to fund a care program for 2-year-olds in New York City at no cost to parents.
The cost of child care can average about $20,000 a year. Federal standards recommend paying no more than 7% of a household’s income toward care, meaning a family would have to earn roughly $285,000 a year for care to be considered affordable.
“Get this: In New York City, child care costs between $26,000 and $40,000 a year. For that price, your toddler should be fluent in three languages and doing your taxes,” Hochul said.
Hochul, who is seeking a second full term in November, will have to get her plans approved by the state Legislature. Here’s what she promised on child care:
2,000 seats for NYC 2-year-olds
Hochul said starting this fall, the state will pay for two years of free child care for New York City’s 2-year-olds. The pledge is a major early boost to Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s signature campaign promise of universal child care.
The program, known as 2-care, will begin in “high need” areas that will be selected by the city and serve about 2,000 children in the first year.
Hochul said the state will help the city fulfill its promise of fully implementing the program for more than 30,000 children within four years. New Yorkers United for Child Care, however, estimated about 55,000 2-year-olds would be enrolled annually in the program.
City officials previously said the state will contribute $75 million in the first year of the program and $425 million in the second year.
Fixing NYC’s 3K program
Hochul also vowed to work with the city to fix the city’s popular program for 3-year-olds that has struggled with a mismatch of supply and demand, meaning some neighborhoods have more toddlers than spots while other programs have more spots than toddlers who need care.
Child care vouchers
The governor said she’ll continue to grow the child care voucher program that provides low cost care for working families. The Child Care Assistance Program serves 170,000 families who pay no more than $15 a week for care. The program has ballooned under Hochul, serving 100,000 more families now than when she took office.
But the program has been a victim of its own success. More than two dozen counties in the state have closed enrollment in the program while New York City opened a wait list that is now 13,500 families long.
Hochul said she wants to boost voucher funding by $1.2 million. It’s unclear how much of that will be funneled to New York City.
Universal child care for 4-year-olds statewide
Hochul wants every four-year-old in the state to have access to free child care by 2028.
While some parts of New York offer pre-K for four-year-olds, not all do. New Yorkers United for Child Care estimates about 50 school districts statewide don’t offer pre K. The governor said the state will increase its contribution to pre-K so school districts can increase their offerings.
State Assemblymember Michaelle Solages, a Democrat, said expanding free or low cost options for families is a “game changer” especially as families who can’t afford child care costs flee the state.
“The first couple of years of life are very expensive. And so I think it not only helps families, but it also helps employers. I’m hearing from a lot of businesses that people are leaving the workforce because the child care is so unaffordable,” she said. “This is really going to help businesses because people can now stay at their job and know that their child’s being taken care of.”
According to state data, nearly a third of women in New York City leave the workforce because they don’t have affordable child care options. Universal child care, the state said, could increase labor participation by 28,000 more workers.
Helping providers and workers
Hochul also acknowledged the challenges for child care providers and said she wants the state to find ways to reduce barriers to make it easier for providers to open and run programs. She also wants to expand scholarship programs and tuition assistance for New Yorkers interested in early childhood education.
A new state office for child care and early education will focus on managing Hochul’s child care plans. Hochul said the state’s strong revenues are enough to get the programs off the ground.
Rebecca Bailin, executive director of New Yorkers United for Child Care, praised Hochul’s plans.
“New York parents are at a breaking point. Child care costs more than a mortgage. Parents are leaving jobs they love and families are leaving a state they love,” Bailin said.
“We have a responsibility to get this right, and parents will continue to raise the heat on Albany to make sure these commitments are fully funded and universally accessible.”
Jimmy Vielkind contributed to this report.
