Gov. Hochul proposes subsidizing construction of new child care centers

ALBANY — Gov. Kathy Hochul on Tuesday proposed spending more than $100 million to help build more child care centers and to bolster the ranks of teachers to staff them.

She proposed creating a pool of child care teachers and substitute teachers through the state Department of Labor to provide staff to keep child care centers open and to work in new centers that will be built.

Hochul’s proposal would use state funds to build on the proposal she made Monday to triple the child tax credit to $1,000. She said Tuesday that the efforts are among child car subsidies already offered by the state, including holding childcare costs to $15 per week for households making up to $108,000 a year.

"We want to support our families, not make them feel they have to leave our state because everything is expensive from housing to child care," Hochul said at a Brooklyn day care center. "We are going to make massive commitments for child care ... to help you get through these tough times."

“As the first mother and grandmother to lead the Senate, I know firsthand how expensive raising children has become in this great state,” said Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins (D-Yonkers). “We look forward to discussing this proposal further … The cost of child care is a burden that can overwhelm families and we need to take steps to make affordable child care available to all New Yorkers.”

Hochul said she also will extend the life of a task force of experts to develop new ideas in making child care affordable. She said the state is looking to provide "universal child care" in the future to all families who need child care, but can't afford it.

"Let's continue having smart experts and people engaged in this career, in this profession, to continue gathering and giving recommendations to myself in the Legislature," she said. "We're going to continue the Coalition on Child Care Task Force and move toward, ultimately, universal child care."

The proposals will be part of Hochul’s State of the State Address on Jan. 14. The address helps set the agenda for the 2025 legislative session that begins Wednesday. Details of Hochul’s proposal will be released later this month when she presents her budget proposal to the Legislature for negotiation with the Democratic majorities of the Senate and Assembly. The budget is due by April 1.

Tuesday’s announcement follows two earlier State of the State proposals aimed at making the state more affordable. They include providing tax rebate checks of up to $500 for households making as much as $300,000 a year and expansion of the state child tax credit of up to $1,000 per child under 4 years old and as much as $500 for households with children 4 to 16 years old.

There was no immediate comment from legislative leaders on Hochul's latest proposal.

By Michael Gormley

michael.gormley@newsday.com@GormleyAlbany

Michael Gormley has worked for Newsday since 2013, covering state government, politics and issues. He has covered Albany since 2001.