Parents will soon be able to enroll their toddlers in free childcare across New York City, Mayor Zohran Mamdani announced alongside Governor Kathy Hochul (D). The program will be available for children ages six weeks to five years old.
“Raising a child takes a village – and it takes a city government willing to step up and tackle the child care crisis head-on,” said Mamdani. “On day eight, we moved closer to making universal childcare a reality. This fall, 2,000 New York City two-year-olds will have a brighter future because of it. Launching free 2-K in these four neighborhoods is just the beginning of our work to put money back in New Yorkers’ pockets, strengthen our entire economy and help more families build their lives here.”
The initial communities, School Districts 6, 10, 18, 23, and 27, were selected “based on economic need, projected child care demand, existing access gaps, provider capacity and readiness,” Mamdani’s office explained. The 2,000 available seats are intended to “serve families in high-need neighborhoods while ensuring programs launch responsibly and sustainably, with inclusive access for children with disabilities and families in temporary housing, including shelters.”
The program will begin in September 2026.
According to The New York Post, taxpayers will foot a $36,000 bill per child. The price tag is about $13,000 more than the average cost of private childcare. New York has allocated $73 million in state funding for the pilot program.
In January, Mamdani suggested that children of illegal immigrants will be part of the childcare program. “All of those children are New Yorkers. They should all be enrolled in 3-K and pre-K, no matter where they were born or where they come from. And we are also proud to be a sanctuary city,” Mamdani stated during a press conference, adding, “We have policies in place, policies that have existed for years in this city that deny ICE agents access into schools, hospitals, city properties, or even the properties of city contractors unless those ICE agents can present a judicial warrant signed by a judge.”
