ICYMI, Governor Kathy Hochul and recently elected Mayor Mamdani of New York City announced BIG investments in child care in the Empire State that would put the state on the path to universal child care in a few years! Governor Hochul has committed $4.5 in this year’s fiscal budget – and that would bring more funding for pre-k across the state, as well as increase 3k slots in NYC and create some slots for two year olds, in addition to adding more funding into the Child Care Assistance Program (CCAP).  [1]

Gov. Hochul has committed to: 

• In New York City, Gov. Hochul has committed to fixing issues of access with 3-K, rolling out 2-care over four years in highest need areas first and committed  (committed to funding for 2-care for two budget years)

• Statewide, Gov. Hochul has committed to getting to universal pre-K by 2028

• She has allocated an additional  ($500M), additional $1.2B for Child Care Assistance Program 

• Gov. Hochul supports pilot programs of fully universal child care  in select communities birth to 3

These investments are historic! They’re a BIG win that would bring much needed relief to so many families who have struggled to afford child care in New York.

We are celebrating this win– it’s a testament to what happens when EVERYONE– moms, dads, grandparents, business leaders, advocates, child care educators and lawmakers – come together to demand what working families need to thrive! 

As a mama who has been working on child care for years, it was especially gratifying to hear lawmakers finally put child care where it belongs – front and center AND that they show their commitment with DOLLARS. 

We moms have been sounding the alarm for years in New York! We’ve taken so many actions, big and small! 

We've shared our stories, joined demonstrations, signed petitions and delivered petitions, sent Gov Hochul letters, tabled at events to invite parents to get involved, met with our lawmakers in person and online, and even made time for joy while we advocated! 

Let’s take a stroll through memory lane and look at the great work we’ve been doing in New York!

 

In community talking to families directly about child care. 

 

We connected with you on  your experiences  and delivered those stories to lawmakers! 

We collected signatures on multiple petitions and delivered them to the Governor and NY lawmakers. (Over the years, we collected OVER 50,000 signatures!)

 

We met with lawmakers in Albany to show state leaders how important child care is to New York families.

 

We delivered petition signatures to the Governor’s office!

 

We met with lawmakers in the district to thank them for being child care champions!

 

We rallied in front of City Hall for Day without Child Care!

 

We rallied in front of Speaker Heastie’s office in the Bronx.

 

We partnered with other organizations  to stand up for immigrant families who need child care!

 

We partnered with community organizations to spread the word about child care in NY! Here we are in Queensbridge Houses meeting parents and talking child care!

 

Our parent leaders went into their communities to talk about our efforts in New York and invited moms to join our mom movement in the Bronx!

 

We rallied in front of Gov. Hochul’s office with our big baby to lift up child care!

 

We wrote to our Members of Congress to remind them that we need child care!

 

 

We found time for joy and laughter at our Motherlovin’ Good Time comedy event to help continue to fuel ourselves in the work. 

 

There's still a lot to do and we're going to keep rallying and fighting for uniersal child care in New York! 

If you're interested in learning more about what's happening in New York to achieve universal child care, check out the New York State Child Care for All Plan 

 

Want to join our MOMentum in New York? 

Here are three ways to get involved: 

1. Make sure you’re getting our emails so you don't miss anything! momsrising.org/join
2. Share your child care story: If you're a parent caregiver or child care provider, share your story with us! You can copy and share this link with your friends: https://www.momsrising.org/blog/new-york-moms-dads-caregivers-and-child-... 
3. NY Parents: Tell us what you need! Fill out our survey and let us know what New Yorkers need to raise a family in New York. You can cpy the link here; https://action.momsrising.org/survey/new-york-parents-tell-us-what-you-need/