Develop a comprehensive plan for high-quality early childcare

Summary

Childcare is a major expense for working families in New York City. Studies show that providing increased access to high-quality childcare—and lowering the cost of childcare—can significantly increase mothers’ employment rates and incomes. It can also help businesses retain employees and, in turn, provide job stability. However, in 2014, New York was the least affordable state in the nation for childcare, with the average price of center-based, infant childcare about 15 percent of the median annual state income for married couples, and 54 percent for single mothers.
A 2011 Center for Urban Future (CUF) report found that only one in four low-income children under the age of six was being served by center-based childcare programs across the five boroughs. In addition, waiting lists for childcare centers in some parts of the city were long, with as many as 40,000 parents in line for childcare services. Several city neighborhoods, most notably the South Bronx, northern Manhattan, and parts of Central Brooklyn, were underserved in subsidized and affordable childcare.