It has only been a few weeks since the new Mayor of New York City, Zohran Mamdani, took office, and he is already putting new initiatives into action. Both the New York Governor, Kathy Hochul, and Mayor Mamdani announced on January 8 a new investment in affordable health and child care in the state. New York will be delivering free child care for two-year-olds (2-Care) and strengthening the programming for three-year-olds (3K).
Governor Hochul, as a mother herself, has long held that “the cost of childcare is simply too high” for all families across the state. Since taking office in 2021, Hochul has expanded access to affordable childcare through investments totalling more than 8 billion dollars, paving the way for universal childcare statewide. The number of children served by state childcare vouchers has almost doubled in just a few years.
This new addition to ensuring free child care access in New York will make Pre-K “truly universal.” This new step to expand child-care subsidies and support neighboring counties beyond NYC is intended to help make Pre-K truly universal and ensure affordable child care is accessible to all families across the state.
The Child Care Assistance Program (CCAP) will now be overseen by the newly created Office of Child Care and Early Education. This office will ensure programming across the state continues to meet the local government’s vision.
Recognizing that programs like these depend heavily on the workforce, the state continues to expand Pell grants, which encourage universities to develop early childhood education programs, ensuring that providers and staff feel supported and secure.
Many states have undertaken similar initiatives, including Florida, which launched its Voluntary Pre Kindergarten Program. This program offers free kindergarten to all 4-year-olds, regardless of income. Similarly, Vermont’s Universal PreK (UPK) provides high-quality educational services for children ages 3-5, and recently received $13 million in federal funding to support the program.
As New York pursues this mission, it invites reflection on federal policies and their impact, encouraging neighboring states and the Department of Education (DOE) to consider how their initiatives and programs can be better reformed. At a time when the economy is becoming increasingly strenuous for many families, we need more states to invest in affordable and accessible child-care options for their futures.