Proposed Res. No. 365-A
Resolution calling on the New York State Legislature to pass, and the Governor to sign, S.1994/A.2218, to remove the minimum wage and hours requirements for applicants of child care assistance
By Council Members Riley, Cabán, Stevens, Gutiérrez, Louis, Restler, Lee and Farías
Whereas, Children enrolled in quality child care programs exhibit reduced aggressive behavior, have lower risk of criminal justice system involvement, lower blood pressure, higher IQ, healthier behaviors, lower rates of grade repetition, reduced need for expensive remedial and special education, higher high school graduation rates, higher college attendance rates, higher labor force participation rates, strengthened families, and higher lifetime earnings, and the lifetime earnings of their parents also increase; and
Whereas, Expanding access to quality, affordable child care not only benefits individual families, it also makes economic sense, because research demonstrates that each dollar invested in child care generates a 13 percent return; and
Whereas, Children from low-income families and minority population groups are less likely to be enrolled in quality, structured child care programs; and
Whereas, In the United States, as of 2024, there were 21,727,514 children under the age of 6, with 68 percent residing in households in which all parents work, and with 12.2 percent of families with children under the age of 5 living below the poverty line; and
Whereas, Compared to other developed nations, the United States lags behind in public spending for child care, presently devoting less than 0.5 percent of its gross domestic product (GDP) to child care; and
Whereas, Nationally, as of 2025, 46 percent of children under the age of six live in a child care desert, and with rising operating costs, including those for food, supplies, insurance, and facilities expenses such as rent or mortgage payments and a lack of direct investment in expanding capacity or retaining qualified educators, additional program closures may further limit their options; and
Whereas, Nationally, during the pandemic, among parents of children under the age of 5 years, 47 percent were concerned about their ability to afford child care upon return to work, and almost 20 percent reported working fewer hours in order to provide child care; and
Whereas, Even prior to the pandemic, it was estimated that inadequate access to quality, affordable child care costs the United States $57 billion annually, including $37 billion due to reduced productivity at work and more time looking for work, $13 billion from reduced revenues and extra recruitment costs for businesses, and $7 billion from reduced tax revenue due to working parents earning less and paying less in sales and income tax; and
Whereas, In New York State, the New York State Child Care Assistance Program, commonly known as the Subsidy Program, is administered by local social services districts and overseen by the New York State Office of Children and Family Services; and
Whereas, For the 2026-2027 New York State Fiscal Year, $2.4 billion was allocated for the New York State Child Care Assistance Program; and
Whereas, In New York State, in Fiscal Year 2025, about 219,000 children in 129,000 families received child care subsidies, with roughly 158,000 children in 93,000 families receiving child care subsidies each month; and
Whereas, Of these 219,000 children, approximately 64 percent were in New York City, nearly 17 percent were in families receiving Temporary Assistance, and 83 percent were categorized as low-income cases; and
Whereas, In New York City, after March 2020, over 50 percent of families with children experienced a loss of employment income due to cuts to wages or work hours, furlough, or a job loss; and
Whereas, As a result, between April 2020 and July 2021, 43 percent of New York City households with children experienced difficulties meeting their usual weekly expenses, 15 percent of such families sometimes or often did not have enough to eat, 31 percent of renter households with children were behind on their rental payments, and of those families with rental arrears, about 40 percent believed that eviction from their apartment was somewhat or very likely; and
Whereas, Between April 2020 and July 2021, 41 percent of New York City women with children reported being unemployed, and as many as 35 percent of such women indicated caring for children as the cause of their unemployment; and
Whereas, New York State law requires applicants for child care subsidies to work a minimum number of hours each week and to be paid no less than the minimum wage; and
Whereas, New York State law’s minimum wage requirement operates to exclude applicants for child care subsidies who are employed in certain occupations, such as home health aides, whose total hours worked often exceed compensated hours; workers in the gig economy; and workers who are misclassified and earning less than the minimum wage, among others; and
Whereas, With the intent of remedying the exclusion of some categories of workers from child care assistance, State Senator Jessica Ramos introduced S.1994 in the New York State Senate, and Assembly Member Sarah Clark introduced companion bill A.2218 in the New York State Assembly, which would eliminate minimum wage or hours requirements for applicants of child care assistance; now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the Council of the City of New York calls on the New York State Legislature to pass, and the Governor to sign, S.1994/A.2218, to remove the minimum wage and hours requirements for applicants of child care assistance.
AZ
LS #9896
Res. #0158-2024
6/4/2026 3:32 PM