ALBANY, N.Y. (May 27, 2026) — In response to the agreement announced on the New York State FY2027 budget, the public education advocacy organization Alliance for Quality Education released the following statement from Marina Marcou-O’Malley and Zakiyah Shaakir-Ansari, Co-Executive Directors:
“Governor Hochul began this year with a bold promise to millions of New Yorkers — that child care would no longer be a privilege, but a guarantee. Building on the ideas and plans brought to her by parents and educators, she put forward her own proposal ready to be the foundation of what could truly become the path to universal child care. Unfortunately, that initial optimism we felt back in January makes this final budget’s shortcomings all the more disappointing, as it does not include adequate investment in the child care workforce or the child care assistance program which helps families access child care. The final budget is more than a billion dollars short of building the path to universal child care that was promised.
“One bright spot of the enacted budget on child care comes from the three pilots launching in three counties across the state (Broome, Monroe, Dutchess). We are encouraged and committed to working with these counties to ensure that the families that need it the most gain first access to these child care programs.
“By her own admission, New York’s ‘first mom governor’ understands that building a universal child care system requires a strong foundation: thriving, competitive wages for the workforce, and enough resources to help families access care without long waitlists. There are already more than 20,000 children on waitlists for care. The enacted budget falls short of what families were promised, and as a result, the path to truly universal child care in New York remains long.”