NY Attorney General Holds Rally to Address State’s Child Care Crisis – NBC New York

New York Attorney General Letitia James held a rally Sunday to address the growing child care crisis and highlighted her commitment to fighting for New Yorkers, including families who have suffered from divestment in the child care system. She was joined by supporters in elected positions in the city and state, as well as working families and child care providers.

“The child care crisis predates the pandemic, and now we have an opportunity to make real investments in high-quality, affordable child care and early education for the entire state,” said Attorney General Letitia James. “I have fought for child care my entire career and will continue to champion the expansion of child care and the workers who educate and care for our young children.”

A statement notes that James has dedicated decades to bringing affordable child care to communities. As a member of the City Council, he restored child care vouchers and kept the lights on at neighborhood centers. During her tenure as Public Defender, she launched a program that provides city workers with low-cost on-the-job childcare. And recently, in her role as attorney general, she fought to stop the Trump administration from cutting benefits for families.

Now, the Senate and Assembly have introduced landmark language in their single-house budget resolution that includes expanding universal pre-K statewide, expanding subsidy requirements for undocumented New Yorkers (up to 500% of the of poverty) and eliminate the work requirement.

Newly elected female-majority City Council members also joined the rally to underscore the importance of women in the workplace and quality child care that gets families back to work.

“Child care costs have skyrocketed, forcing many parents, mostly mothers, to stay home,” said Councilwoman and Health Committee Chair Lynn Schulman. “Now is the time to make child care accessible and affordable for everyone, regardless of zip code or state. I thank the Attorney General for shining a light on this critical issue today and her commitment to women and children.”

Relief from the child care crisis is incomplete without living wages for the experts who care for our children. To seriously revamp the child care system, child care workers must earn a living wage, lift them out of poverty and into the middle class.

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