Local leaders push for state support to bring pilot programs to upstate counties.

BUFFALO, N.Y. — Gov. Kathy Hochul is moving forward with her plan to expand universal child care across New York, focusing first on the New York City area.

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But local leaders say Western New York may have to wait before seeing benefits. They emphasize more funding needs to be secured first, with lawmakers pushing to close a local funding gap so more counties can participate in the state’s new child care pilot programs.

The governor was in New York City on Thursday, announcing new progress toward funding universal child care for 2-year-olds. Her plan will eventually make pre-K universal across the state, but for now, only three upstate counties — Broome, Dutchess, and Monroe — have access to more affordable, state-subsidized child care for kids three and under through pilot programs.

Local lawmakers say families in Western New York could benefit from the same kind of pilot program.

State Senator Jeremy Zellner and Assemblymember Jon Rivera spoke with us about the local need and the push to secure funding for the county.

“We shouldn’t be choosing winners and losers by zip code or by county. We’ve got to fully implement this across the state. But as I said, there’s a lot of challenges that come along with that, and we’ve got to make sure our districts are ready,” Senator Zellner said. 

Zellner added that “Parents shouldn’t have to choose between going to work and providing quality care for their kids. We can do better as a state”>, highlighting the importance of statewide support.”

Rivera says he and his colleagues often discuss child care.

“It’s one thing that’s, I think, supported, no matter what your economics are, no matter what your political affiliation is, we know that if we expand child care programs that will be good for families, for households, for business,” the Assemblyman said.

Rivera also said, “Affordable child care is not just a family issue, it’s an economic issue for our entire region”, tying the need directly to Western New York’s workforce and economy,”

The governor says universal child care and pre-K will be fully implemented across New York by the 2028–2029 school year, costing the state $1.7 billion in 2026 and bringing total state funding to $4.5 billion.

Though he was not available for comment Thursday, Republican State Senator Rob Ortt has previously criticized the plan, arguing that expanding child care through state government could drive up costs and questioning whether taxpayers should foot the bill.