By New York Post (Opinion) | Created at 2026-09-03 22:06:58 | Updated at 2026-09-03 22:41:49
57 minutes ago
Mayor Zohran Mamdani speaking about his planned universal 2-K program at a preschool classroom in The Bronx on Aug. 4, 2026.
Robert Miller for NY Post
It’s hard to square any of Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s socialist dreams with reality, but when it comes to free, universal child care, even he should’ve seen the technical problems looming long ago — and made sure they were fixed by now.
Never mind that City Hall isn’t likely ever to have the money — $6 billion, by his count — for a fully scaled-up version of the child care he promised (and that an independent study put the cost at 50% more than that).
It turns out the Department of Education staff can’t even process contracts and distribute funding in time for the opening, leaving city child-care providers in a lurch.
And even Mamdani’s small expansion of the child-care program, for 2,000 2-K kids, only makes the problems worse.
Some providers actually had to dip into their own pockets to pay for staffing and other essentials; one said she had to tap her own personal 401(k).
City Comptroller Mark Levine says his office hadn’t received any 2-K contracts for registration as of last Friday.
Although City Hall hasn’t given exact numbers, scores of child-care centers are likely at risk.
Adrienne Bond, director of the Quick Start Daycare Center in Queens, feared that if she opened on the first day of school, she “won’t have staff” because she was awaiting roughly $400,000 from the city.
City Hall on Monday belatedly announced an emergency all-hands-on-deck response to fix the child-care payment backlogs, using contracting officers from across city government, plus an added $43 million in funds.
The plan also includes “expediting interest-free bridge loans, accelerating contract registration and delivering critical supplies directly to providers.”
Yet if City Hall does manage to pick up the pace of contract reviews, it will likely swamp the city Comptroller’s Office, leaving far too much work to be done at the last minute.
Maybe the goal to set up Levine as the scapegoat for processing delays — perhaps as revenge for his dead-on criticism: “The start of the school year is not an unexpected event.”
Anyone with the slightest understanding of the DOE’s penchant for bureaucratic bungling should’ve seen this disaster coming.
Yet the DOE focused on rolling out the expansion to make good on Mamdani campaign promise without bothering to get all the financial ducks lined up first.
It’s in keeping with the practices of this Potemkin government: Pretend you’re rolling out socialism — by announcing new government-run grocery stores, free buses, universal child care — but never worry about actually delivering.
