Robin Hood Commends Governor Hochul and State Legislature for Passing FY26 Budget that Lifts 50,000 Children Out of Poverty Across New York 

NEW YORK – Today, Governor Kathy Hochul, Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, and Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie reached an agreement to adopt the FY26 state budget. In response, Robin Hood CEO Richard R. Buery Jr., a member of the Child Poverty Reduction Advisory Council, released the following statement:

“Today, Governor Hochul and the New York State legislature adopted a budget for Fiscal Year 2026.  It’s a maxim that a budget is a statement of values, and the budget approved today shows what New York values: a commitment to fighting child poverty and supporting families who are struggling through a generational affordability crisis, where the costs of basic needs like food, child care and housing are overwhelming New Yorkers.

We’re one of the richest states in the country, but New York ranks 40th in child poverty. A few years ago, New York State passed the Child Poverty Reduction Act, committing us to reduce child poverty by half in 2032. Today, Governor Hochul and the legislature took decisive steps to move us along that path. Through just one policy – a significant expansion of the Empire State Child Credit proposed by Governor Hochul – New York will move as many as 50,000 children above the poverty line. The benefit has been more than tripled to $1,000 for children under four and has been raised from $330 to $500 for older children. In addition, more than 187,000 children who had previously been denied access to the benefit because their families didn’t meet income requirements will now receive the full benefits of this poverty-fighting policy. The expansion of the New York Child Tax Credit alone will move five times as many children out of poverty as the current child credit.

In a further support to families, the budget establishes a $50 million statewide pilot housing voucher program that will help thousands of households avoid homelessness by giving them a hand in paying rent. New York City is in the midst of a historic affordable housing crisis, and this voucher program is an important first step in what we hope will be a larger investment to combat housing instability in the years ahead.

The budget also ensures free breakfast and lunch for school children throughout the State – a smart investment that New York City families already enjoy, and makes a historic investment in the subways and buses that are the lifeline of our city, in addition to important investments in mental health care.

While I am encouraged by these important commitments in the Empire State, I am under no illusions about the challenges ahead. Cuts to vital federal social safety-net programs, such as Medicaid and SNAP, that keep nearly a million New Yorkers out of poverty are on the table in Washington.  One in two New Yorkers rely on Medicaid for their health insurance while food stamps help put food on the table for 20 percent of city residents. We risk reversing our hard-won progress, to the detriment of poor and low-income children who will suffer the most. 

While the federal government threatens to step away from supporting New Yorkers, I applaud New York State for stepping up. Let’s continue to work towards building a State that works for all New Yorkers, especially the next generation, and where the American Dream can finally become the American reality.”

About Robin Hood

We are NYC’s largest local poverty-fighting philanthropy and since 1988, we have invested nearly $3 billion to elevate and fuel New Yorkers’ permanent escapes from poverty. In 2024, through $129.5 million in grantmaking with 285 community partners, we created pathways to opportunities out of poverty through our strategic partnerships on child care, child poverty, jobs, living wages, and more. We are scaling impact at a population level for the nearly 2 million New Yorkers living in poverty. At Robin Hood, we believe your starting point in life should not define where you end up. To learn more about our work and impact, follow us on X @RobinHoodNYC or go to robinhood.org.

MEDIA CONTACT

Crystal Cooper, Deputy Director of Communications, Robin Hood, press@robinhood.org