Good morning, Chair Joseph and members of the committee, and thank you for holding this hearing today. I am here on behalf of Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso to advocate for vital programs across Brooklyn and New York City public schools. With looming federal cuts threatening essential services such as childcare funding[1], it is crucial that the City aggressively invests to maintain these services for our most vulnerable communities. Unfortunately, the Adams administration has proposed cuts to several key areas.
For FY26, we recommend increased funding for Fair Student Funding, early childhood education, and critical programs such as community schools, restorative justice, and arts education. We also urge the reversal of cuts to 3K and Special Education PreK seats, alongside ensuring adequate mental health services for students. Additionally, we call for expanded school construction to address overcrowding, meet class size requirements, and improve overall learning conditions.
EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION: Providing free early childcare is critical for NYC families, given our city’s growing affordability crisis. In January, the NYC Comptroller’s Office noted that the average costs for family-based care have increased by 79% since 2019, now at $18,200 per year. Center-based care has also increased by 43%, now at a staggering $26,000 a year.[2] These increases underscore that access to free and low-cost childcare can make the difference between a family staying in NYC or being forced to leave. Despite this, the Adams administration continues to propose cuts. The FY26 Preliminary Budget reflects a cut of $112M to 3K seats, as well as $25M to extended day/extended year seats. As we’ve all heard from parents, this is the wrong direction. Additionally, it is deeply concerning to see a cut of $55M proposed to Special Education PreK seats in light of DOE’s ongoing failure to close the gap in 280 legally mandated seats, reported late January 2025.[3] Furthermore, Brooklyn’s trusted childcare providers are fighting for their survival after continued lapses in payments, non-renewals of their leases[4], and lack of flexible contracts resulting in vacant or underenrolled
programs. Our providers are also at a disadvantage given that existing contracts prioritize funding per-pupil vs. school-based programs that are funded by class, generating inequitable pay.
Especially at a time where federal funding cuts threaten Head Start and other programs, we should be stepping up for our families, ensuring that childcare facilities remain open and that our City budget reflects our commitment that every child can have a quality start to their education.
SCHOOL CLIMATE & CULTURE: School-based support programs are critical for our youth, and it is disappointing that we must fight for them seemingly every year. Borough President Reynoso stands with the Council in its calls to secure and baseline sustainable funding for the initiatives outlined below:
- Community Schools. Community Schools play a critical role in supporting 21st-Century learning. The over 100 community schools in Brooklyn transform communities and provide vital wraparound services to children and their families. The administration thankfully included funding in the FY25 budget for 113 community schools that faced expiring stimulus funding. However, this funding was only for one year, and must be restored again. The Borough President calls for $14M to be baselined for Community Schools.
- Restorative Justice Programs. While DOE has seen an uptick in hate crimes and bullying, this administration is proposing cuts to initiatives that center empathy, healing, and accountability. Punitive measures alone have never made our schools safer. Yet this administration is leaving a $12M funding gap for restorative justice programs in underserved communities throughout the city.
- Arts Education. The Borough President urges this administration to prioritize arts education, which is currently only 3% of DOE’s budget.[1] During last year’s Preliminary Budget hearing, DOE revealed that 307 schools are operating without certified art teachers. Although $41M was allocated in FY25, with $25M earmarked for direct funding and the remainder for restoring prior cuts, this is again at risk of being cut for FY26. Despite these setbacks, our dedicated arts educators and institutions continue to innovate, transforming students’ lives by using art to build community, heal trauma, and much more. Prioritizing arts funding is essential for developing competent, well-adjusted young people and supporting the over 700 cultural organizations partnering with schools to close gaps.
- Youth Mental Health. Despite Mayor Adams’ announcement of $650M in new mental health initiatives, including 100 additional Safe Haven beds for runaway homeless youth[2], the DOE’s Preliminary Budget cuts approximately $889.5K from its mental health continuum work. This reduction undermines the holistic approach needed to adequately staff and support services across three agencies. We cannot expect to transform young lives without quality mental health programming. The administration must invest more in DOE’s youth mental health services and School-Based Mental Health Clinics to ensure comprehensive support for students in need.
CLASS SIZE. The administration has underfunded and overlooked compliance with the State’s class size mandate.For FY26, the Borough President urges the DOE and SCA to prioritize a comprehensive, system-wide approach for compliance. In FY25, the DOE allocated $296 million—67% more than the previous year—including $79.4 million for Brooklyn schools to implement strategies like teacher programming and virtual learning.[3] Despite these efforts, a fragmented, short-term approach remains, exacerbated by the lack of mention of class size reduction in the Rockefeller report’s recommendations[4] and the SCA’s withholding of critical data including information on 3K seat projections, housing projections, school rezonings, co-locations, and more.[5]
These gaps necessitate a multi-year plan, including the hiring of 12,000 teachers, expanded school construction, and equitable resource allocation to address overcrowded schools. The proposed $10M cut to teacher recruitment funding undermines efforts to close the teacher gap. With billion-dollar need projections according to SCA and DOE officials, we must thoughtfully approach building new spaces and implementing the recommendations of the Class Size Working Group.
SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION AUTHORITY.
School Construction Authority. With great need citywide, Borough President Reynoso calls for increased funding for SCA on several capital-related initiatives to improve the space and quality of our schools. Initiatives including the following.
- Class Size Law Compliance. The Borough President commends that the School Construction Authority’s (SCA) preliminary 2025-2029 Capital Plan allocates $6.13B for class size reduction. However, this investment is significantly less than the reported $25B to $27B that would be needed to fund 85,000 new seats.[6] The Borough President also highlights the importance of addressing overcrowding in districts such as Districts 15 and 20, where approximately 27 and 40 schools are over-utilized, respectively.[7]
- Air Conditioning for All. In addition, the Borough President continues to fight for SCA’s current designation of “instructional spaces” to be expanded to include essential learning areas like libraries, gyms, and dance rooms; revisiting this designation could enhance learning environments. The City must allocate additional capital funding for air conditioning retrofits.
- Project Scoping. As Reso A projects increase in cost annually and vary in size and scope, SCA has noted that NYC Comptroller Directive 10, which disallows any capital work to begin without complete funding in place, limits elected officials’ ability to contribute funding.SCA should follow its own commitment to securing additional funding and/or establishing a dedicated fund for project scoping and assessments to streamline the process, allow for more accurate capital awards, and reduce the time it takes to begin capital projects.
Thank you again for holding this hearing today. Borough President Reynoso looks forward to continuing work with the Council to provide quality educational spaces and programming for Brooklyn’s students.