New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is expected to make an announcement regarding child care with other officials Monday.
The city’s comptroller, Mark Levine, and public advocate Jumaane Williams will join the mayor for the press conference at 9:30 a.m. in Lower Manhattan.
The announcement comes three weeks after the mayor announced 1,000 new 3-K seats were going to be available for residents.
3-K program expanded across NYC
The program offers free preschool for 3- and 4-year-olds. It was expanded to 56 zip codes across the five boroughs.
“For too long, families were promised universal 3-K but offered seats miles away, forcing them to pay out of pocket for child care or leave the city,” Mamdani previously said. “Today we’re making a new commitment: government can deliver real relief from the affordability crisis. By making 3-K truly universal, we’re building a city where every New Yorker can afford to raise a family.”
At the conference, the mayor said more 3-K is coming, and that announcement was just the beginning.
Mamdani said the program will save parents an estimated $20,000 a year per child and help them stay in the city.
Applications for fall are closed. Residents have until April 24 to make any updates to an existing application.
Initial phase of 2-K program launched
The mayor and New York Gov. Kathy Hochul announced the first four communities receiving 2,000 free child care seats for 2-year-olds on March 3.
Areas in Manhattan, the Bronx, Queens and Brooklyn were part of the rollout.
Hochul said the state will fully fund the new program for the first two years. The first 2,000 seats cost $73 million, and the state is prepared to spend up to $425 million next year.
Applications will open this summer.