Holy shit, first universal free childcare program in the United States just dropped

"New Mexico’s child care assistance program is set to expand and become the first universal program in the U.S., the governor announced Monday [September 8, 2025].

New Mexico Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham said the state is eliminating the income eligibility requirements of its current child care assistance program to do this.

Currently, the program waives copayments for New Mexico families with incomes at or below 400% of the federal poverty level. That allows those families to pay little-to-no child care costs.

In November [2025], that will now apply to all families. The state estimates this expansion will save families an average of $12,000 per child [to clarify, that is PER YEAR. Families will save an average of $12,000 per child PER YEAR. x, x. That is a life-changing difference for so many fucking people.]

“It’s the difference between making it when inflation in this country remains too high. Particularly, in areas, like food, things that families have to have to raise their families,” the governor said.

With the expansion comes increased demand for care facilities. New Mexico estimates they will need an additional 5,000 early childhood professionals to achieve a universal system. They plan to increase reimbursement rates and give incentives to programs committing to pay entry-level staff a minimum of $18 per hour and offer 10 hours of care per day, five days a week.

[Note: As of 2025, the minimum wage in New Mexico is $12/hour (or $3/hour for tipped employees, I hate the tipped minimum wage), and a lot of care work pays minimum wage or a dollar or two above it, so this will mean significant raises for a lot of people.]

The state also plans to do the following to improve the supply of care:

• Establish a $12.7 million low-interest loan fund to construct, expand and renovate child care facilities
• Additional $20 million requested in the Fiscal Year 2027 budget. 
• Target growth to focus on care for infants, toddlers, low-income families and children with special needs. 
• Partner with employers and school districts to expand child care options for working families. 
• Launch a statewide campaign to recruit licensed and registered home providers. 

“Early childhood care and education is a public good,” said Elizabeth Groginsky, secretary of the New Mexico’s Early Childhood Education and Care Department. “By providing universal access and improving pay for our early childhood workforce, we are easing financial pressure on families, strengthening our economy and helping every child learn in safe, nurturing environments. This is the kind of investment that builds equity today and prosperity for the future.” 

More information on how to access universal child care benefits and more is available here: https://www.nmececd.org/universal...

So many families have to make the tough decision to raise their children or work to pay the bills. This will solve that problem for many hard working New Mexicans."

-via KOB4, September 8, 2025