SOUTH RICHMOND, Queens (WABC) — As Mayor Zohran Mamdani continues his push to promote 2-K programs starting in a few months, he’s praising a new Siena Poll that says a majority of New Yorkers want to raise taxes on the rich.
Mayor Mamdani celebrated the Hindu holiday of Holi with little preschoolers in Queens and clouds of colored powder.
It’s the kind of home-based day care the mayor will need to ramp up as the city’s 2-K program debuts later this year.
“It’s going to be through a wide variety of childcare providers, including places like this one, which are home-based providers as well as center-based provision,” he said. “Because what we’ve heard from so many parents is they want the flexibility and the cultural and linguistic fluency which comes with these kinds of options.”
Universal 2-K is intended to be phased in over four years, starting this fall with 2,000 children in the city’s neediest neighborhoods, including families in School District 6 in Upper Manhattan, School District 10 in the northern Bronx, Districts 18 and 23 in eastern Brooklyn and School District 27 in central Queens.
The pilot program is already fully funded. It will expand to 12,000 children next year and to every 2-year-old in the city by Year Four, if the legislature provides the funding.
Mamdani, a democratic socialist, has called for higher city taxes on millionaires and major corporations.
Gov. Kathy Hochul opposes those taxes, but a new Siena Poll found that 54% of state residents approve compared to 29% who don’t. It’s even more so among city residents, in which 62% approve, compared to just 21% who disapprove.
Eyewitness News asked Mamdani if there is something Gov. Hochul is missing.
“Well, I can tell you that I’ve been encouraged by the conversations that I’ve been having with Gov. Hochul, and she’s a committed partner to not only rolling out universal childcare for 2-year-olds, but also to putting the city back on firm financial footing. That’s the focus of the work we’re doing,” Mamdani said.
When asked if he’s pleased to see that a majority of New Yorkers are saying they want taxes on millionaires, the mayor said, “I’m always pleased to know that I’m in agreement with the majority of New Yorkers.”
Over the governor’s opposition, Democratic state lawmakers are considering tax increases on wealthy New Yorkers. They’ve done that before, and it’s too soon to predict how far it will go this time.
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