New York (WBEN) - New York Gov. Kathy Hochul announced on Thursday an unprecedented investment as the next step to deliver affordable, universal child care for children under 5-years-old across the state.
The governor has partnered with New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani to deliver free child care for 2-year-olds in the city, in addition to strengthening the existing 3K program to achieve universal care and ultimately, serve all families across the city.
In 2026, the state will continue to expand access to high-quality child care programs throughout New York through a diversity of models, saving New York families billions of dollars each year.
Since taking office, Gov. Hochul has taken steps to expand access to affordable child care for families through an investment of more than $8 billion in the state’s child care infrastructure, dramatically expanding access, as part of laying the groundwork for the implementation of universal child care statewide.
"There’s one thing that every family in New York can agree on, the cost of child care is simply too high," said Gov. Hochul on Thursday. "As New York’s first mom Governor, fighting for New York’s families has always been at the core of my agenda. Since taking office, I’ve put families front and center, fighting to make our state more affordable and laying the groundwork to deliver universal child care. Today, I’m proud to partner with Mayor Mamdani and leaders across our state to make this a reality, turning that foundation into a concrete roadmap that will transform the lives of working parents and kids across our state."
Gov. Hochul’s State of the State investments will commit to delivering affordable child care for nearly 100,000 more kids. Through this $1.7 billion increased investment, the total FY27 investment will be $4.5 billion for child care and prekindergarten services statewide.
As part of Gov. Hochul’s 2026 State of the State, this proposal will:
- Make Pre-K truly universal statewide.
- Partner with New York City to launch the new Mayor’s signature 2-Care program and finally realize the promise of universal 3K access in New York City.
- Support other counties in building out new child care pilots that offer high-quality affordable care to families regardless of income.
- Expand child care subsidies to tens of thousands of additional families.
Alongside these commitments, the governor will launch an Office of Child Care and Early Education to steer the implementation of high-quality, universal child care for New York families.