New Mexico! First State in America With Universal Childcare

Guaranteed no-cost universal child care starting Nov. 1.

Fast Facts

• This week, the New Mexico Early Childhood Education and Care Department announced they were launching guaranteed, no-cost childcare on November 1.
• This department was created by the New Mexico state legislature in 2019 with a clear mission: “Optimize the health, development, education, and well-being of babies, toddlers, and preschoolers through a family-driven, equitable, community-based system of high-quality prenatal and early childhood programs and services.”
• The recent announcement makes New Mexico the first state in America to guarantee no-cost childcare.
• This policy proposal is overwhelmingly popular - Zohran Mamdani’s platform in New York City also calls for universal no-cost childcare.

Prediction: Universal, no-cost childcare will be nationwide law by 2031.

Sources:

• https://www.nmececd.org/2025/08/19/ececd-provides-roadmap-for-a-universal-early-childhood-system/