Albany, New York — Gov. Kathy Hochul was in Albany on Wednesday to say that New York would get an extra $100 million to build more childcare centers because the state is currently short on them.
The money will be split between two new $50 million programs that aim to open or expand childcare centers and give tax breaks to businesses that open or expand child care for babies and toddlers for their workers.
Hochul made the statement at a child care center on the W. Averell Harriman State Office Building Campus. She is the first woman to be governor of the state and a mother of two.
“When you see kids here. The Democrats said, “That means the parents can work, and a lot of the people who work here work for the Department of Labor.” So, this gives people a chance that they don’t have in many other places. I’m happy that we have it in New York, but I also want to see it spread to other states.
Grants from the Child Care Capital Program, which gives money to eligible childcare providers to build new centers or make current ones bigger, will range from $500,000 to $1.5 million. Downstate New York, which includes New York City, Long Island, Dutchess, Orange, Putnam, Rockland, Sullivan, Ulster, and Westchester counties, will get 60% of the money. A forty percent share will be given to the rest of the state.
Hochul said, “The projects have to be shovel-ready and running within six months of the end of construction.” “All of this is a plan for a better future for our families and their children. It also builds on the $7.6 billion investment we announced two years ago to keep child care costs low.”
Under the new business tax credit program that was also announced on Wednesday, companies in the state must offer their employees’ babies and toddlers care at new or registered childcare centers, either directly or through a third party. The companies must also make sure that their employees don’t have to pay too much for childcare services.
A 2021 report from the state said that decades of funding and treating child care as a private business instead of important public infrastructure had put the system on the verge of breaking down. The COVID-19 pandemic made things even worse. The report found that most families can’t afford the high costs of child care, which can reach over $2,600 a month or $21,000 a year. It also found that many women have had to quit their jobs because of the high cost of child care.
“So, as the first mother governor of New York and the first woman to ever hold this office, I know how hard it is to find enough childcare slots and how expensive it is.” This can do something. It kept me from getting a job many years ago, but I didn’t have any other options. “So, this is something I care about,” Hochul said. “I want to make sure that all families can find good, high-quality child care that doesn’t cost a lot of money.”