Wow: Gov. Kathy Hochul is embracing Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s universal-child-care scheme even as the Minnesota scandals expose how readily unscrupulous operators can abuse such programs.
That is, she’s going all-in on an initiative that will not only squeeze New York’s beleaguered tax base even more — but also hand scammers fresh opportunities to rip off the public.
Hochul claims child care is “something reasonable” that she and the mayor can work together on to reduce cost of living.
Ah, yes; the “reasonable” policy of providing “free” child care to every New Yorker aged 6 weeks to 5 years — at an eye-watering cost to taxpayers.
Mamdani wants to hike taxes on corporations and the top 1% of earners to cover the estimated $6 billion price tag for the program in New York City; Hochul’s seemingly looking to do it statewide, which would cost billions more.
Indeed, the lefty Fiscal Policy Institute last week put the cost at over $8 billion a year — and warned, “It is neither economically nor fiscally realistic to expect that the full $8 billion cost of statewide childcare can come from only the richest New Yorkers.”
To cover less than half that cost, the FPI suggests a new 0.43% payroll tax on wages over $25,000 a year.
Of course, costs could easily soar higher if, as per Minnesota’s example, government-subsidized day care in New York becomes a wide-open target for fraudsters.
FBI Director Kash Patel has confirmed an investigation into fake Minnesota child-care centers bilking the state for millions as part of the massive fraud scandal that drained up to $9 billion in government funds.
This came after independent journalist Nick Shirley’s viral video showed him visiting one publicly funded center after another in the North Star State, only to find locked doors, blacked-out windows and zero kids during business hours.
Minnesota’s leaders apparently ignored the out-in-the-open thievery because the perpetrators were primarily Somali, but New York authorities are just as woke and just as tolerant of the abuse of taxpayer cash.
After all, it took years for the state to catch on to rampant fraud within the Medicaid home-care program — which saw scammers using adult day-care facilities to steal $68 million from the public till.
Opening up the spigot for government-funded day cares, without meticulous auditing practices in place, would be ringing the dinner bell for thieves.
Guarding against that possibility doesn’t seem to be a prime priority for Hochul; the fact that she’s talking up subsidized child care now proves that she’s completely out-of-touch with how bad the public shakedown in Minnesota is — and how much it’s disturbed taxpayers.
Wake up, governor: New Yorkers don’t want sham day cares stealing public funds all over their city.
Universal child care isn’t a win for “affordability;” it’s an expensive, taxpayer-slamming boondoggle that doubles as a feast for fraudsters.
This story originally appeared on NYPost
