New York State’s Child Care Assistance Program covers some or all of the cost of child care for eligible families. Supervised by the Office of Children and Family Services (OCFS) and administered by 58 social service districts (New York City and the 57 counties outside the city), enrollment in the Child Care Assistance Program changed significantly over the last 15 years: declining during the 2010’s, a steep fall during the COVID-19 pandemic, and a rapid rebound since 2022.

The Children’s Agenda has developed this interactive tool to show the trends by month at both the state and county levels:

What has driven this surge in enrollment?

Expanded funding from the State: Total annual funding for the Child Care Assistance Program grew from approximately $800 million prior to the pandemic to nearly $1.8 billion in 2024-25.

Expanded eligibility for assistance: In 2021, eligibility for care was limited to households making less than 200% of the federal poverty level. In 2022 and 2023, New York State began increasing eligibility for assistance considerably, first to 300% of the federal poverty threshold, and then to 85% of the state median income. For a family of 3, income eligibility limits increased from $43,920 to $91,251 in just 2 years.

These funding increases and eligibility expansions helped tens of thousands of families across New York afford child care so parents can work or pursue an education.

Is there a reason for concern?

Yes. Growing enrollment can only continue if funding levels are sufficient to support the cost of care and the number of families applying for assistance. In March 2025, 10 counties announced plans to close enrollment and/or establish wait lists for eligible families who qualify for assistance. New York City has also indicated that it will close enrollment later this spring if it does not receive a significant funding increase from New York State.

On April 8^th, The Children’s Agenda published an analysis that projects that nearly every county in New York State will be forced to close enrollment over the next year and a half if the final state budget does not include more funding for the Child Care Assistance Program. Tens of thousands of families statewide could lose their child care if this happens.

We will update this page monthly to include information on counties with closed enrollment and track how those closures affect enrollment in the Child Care Assistance Program.

To learn more about the Empire State Campaign for Child Care, please visit Empire State Campaign for Child Care

To learn more about The Children’s Agenda’s child care advocacy, please visit Child Care – The Children’s Agenda

Pete Nabozny is Director of Policy with The Children’s Agenda.