Governor Hochul and Mayor Mamdani Extend Nearly 100,000 3-K, Pre-K Offers; Cut Average Travel Distance for 3-K Families by Six Blocks

Governor Kathy Hochul and Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani today announced that New York City has extended 99,921 offers for 3-K and Pre-K for the upcoming school year, with more families receiving offers to one of their top choice programs and average travel distances decreasing across the city. This includes 2,000 additional 3-K seats for New York City families to have childcare closer to home, made possible by the state’s direct investment in 3-K.

In January, Governor Hochul and Mayor Mamdani announced an unprecedented investment putting New York on the path to free, universal childcare for every family across the city, including funding the first two years of 2-K, strengthening Pre-K and an aggressive focus on expanding 3-K access. Those efforts have already resulted in more families receiving offers to their preferred 3-K program and fewer families ending up on waitlists, a direct result of this partnership.

“Every child deserves a strong start, and every parent deserves to know their child has a safe, high-quality place to learn and grow,” Governor Hochul said. “Today’s announcement ensures more families are able to access the 3-K opportunities they want, and provides universal 3-K and Pre-K to nearly 100,000 children across New York City, giving more parents access to affordable childcare in their own communities and setting up the next generation for success. I’m proud to partner with Mayor Mamdani to deliver for New Yorkers across all five boroughs.”

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said, “Today’s announcement marks a new era for childcare in New York City — one where families can trust that government will deliver for them. Across the five boroughs, families are traveling shorter distances, more children are receiving offers to their top-choice programs, and fewer parents are being forced to choose between unaffordable private care and leaving the city they love. This is what government excellence looks like.”

In the FY2027 State Budget, Governor Hochul is putting New York State on a concrete path to universal, affordable child care, increasing investment by $1.7 billion bringing the total child care and pre-kindergarten investment to $4.5 billion.

This year’s budget will make investments that will support the delivery of affordable childcare to up to 100,000 additional children. The Governor's landmark investment will increase funding by $1.7 billion bringing the total FY27 investment to $4.5 billion for child care and pre-kindergarten services statewide.

These investments will:

• Make Pre-K truly universal statewide with funding to make high-quality Pre-K seats available for all four-year-olds in New York by the start of the 2028-29 school year and increasing State grants to existing programs to ensure high-quality care.
• Partner with New York City to launch the new 2-Care program and finally realize the promise of universal 3K access in New York City.
• Enhance the Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit to help defray childcare expenses for 230,000 New York families by increasing the benefit by an average of $576.
• Support the development of New York’s ‘First 3’ program, which will partner with counties to offer high-quality, affordable child care to children 0-3 regardless of income.
• Make historic investments in the Child Care Assistance Program, delivering high-quality, affordable child care to tens of thousands of additional young New Yorkers that is capped at $15 a week for most families.
• Support the child care workforce through early childhood educator preparation.

Alongside these commitments, Governor Hochul will launch an Office of Child Care and Early Education to steer the implementation of high-quality, universal child care for New York families, and will work to enhance awareness of the Empire State Child Credit to ensure as many families as possible benefit from the Governor’s historic expansion of New York’s child tax credit, which increased the credit from $330 per child to $1,000 per child for children under four and $500 per child for children ages four through 16.