NEWYORK: Governor Hochul announced an unprecedented investment as the next step to deliver affordable, universal childcare for children under five years of age across New York State.
The Governor will partner with Mayor Zohran Mamdani to deliver free child care for two-year-olds in New York 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 the state, through a diversity of models, saving New York families billions of dollars each year.
Since taking office, Governor Hochul has already taken major steps to expand access to affordable child care for families through an $8 billion dollar investment 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 childcare is simply too high,” Governor Hochul said.
“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 childcare. 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.”
“Over the past 14 months, a movement was born to fight for a city where every New Yorker could afford a life of dignity and every family could afford to raise their kids. Today, Governor Hochul and I meet that movement as we celebrate our joint commitment to universal child care,” Mayor Zohran Mamdani said.
“This victory represents much more than a triumph of city and state government working in partnership—it is proof that when New Yorkers come together, we can transform the way government serves working families.”
Governor Hochul’s State of the State investments will commit to delivering affordable childcare for nearly 100,000 more kids.
