“Now housing is the biggest item for any family’s budget, unless of course, you have kids and child care. Costs have been too high for too long, while providers and care workers have been barely hanging on. It stresses families. It pushes women out of the workforce. It holds our economy back. We have to lower child care costs.â€
[Standing ovation]
“You know, last year we delivered nearly half a billion dollars in money to stabilize the sector. That was good. It made it easier for families to get financial help. This year’s budget, we’ll keep that funding in place. We need to go further.
“Yesterday we were at the Y in Malden. We met some dedicated early educators and some very cute kids, did we not Dr. Tutwiler? They were having fun and they were learning important skills in their pre-K classroom. It’s an opportunity we want for every child. So here’s what we need to do. It’s our “Gateway to Pre-K†plan to save families money and transform early education in our state.
“First, we’ll direct help to thousands of families by expanding eligibility for state financial assistance. In this program, child care costs are capped based on what you can afford. Next, we’ll set a new goal for early education in Massachusetts. Let’s have universal pre-K for every four-year-old in Massachusetts.
[Standing ovation]
“Let’s do it.
[Standing ovation]
“Let’s do it.
[Standing ovation]
“To get there, I want, by 2026, a guaranteed access to high-quality affordable preschool for every four-year-old in all 26 of our Gateway Cities. That means a seat in a classroom for over 23,000 children. But we won’t stop there. We’re going to keep working with businesses, with providers, and with the champions of childcare in the Legislature to get this done, to expand access, to lower costs, and to meet this childcare challenge.â€
— Governor Maura Healey, State of the Commonwealth Address, January 17, 2024. Time mark 1:37:32.