What's next for early care and education in New York City?

Early care and education (ECE) received major attention and historically high funding in New York State’s budget for FY2023 earlier this year.

 “What’s Next for Early Care and Education in New York City?” a new report from the Center for New York City Affairs, analyzes the wins – and losses – for early care and education in the State budget, and the confluence of forces that inspired action on these issues.

 The need for expanded access to high-quality ECE gained real momentum due to the disruptions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, which left working families struggling to find safe and affordable care and ECE providers struggling to keep their doors open.

 Negotiations between Governor Kathy Hochul and State legislators yielded a pledged agreement for $7 billion to ECE over four years, with $4 billion going to New York City. While important and more ambitious goals were not realized, the State budget signaled significant progress.

 The report also discusses new City ECE initiatives, identifies key potential stumbling blocks in implementing State measures at the local level, and examines further changes needed to strengthen New York City’s ECE system.

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