Join fellow DFNYCers and others from progressive groups, education groups and labor groups for a bus trip from NYC to Albany!  UPKNYC, the group that is promoting Mayor de Blasio's Pre-K plan, is organizing this bus trip.

When:  Tuesday, March 4th, 2014

Time: Buses will leave various NYC locations at 6:30am and be back in NYC at approximately 6ish pm.

6:30 in the morning?!  Yes. You could do it if you needed to catch a plane, right?  Like other lobbying trips to our state capital, we need to get on a bus in the early morning, where we will meet other progressives and learn the talking points of UPK and tax policy, then arrive in Albany and convince them that NYC should be able to enact its own Pre-K plan with a dedicated funding stream.

RSVP & Questions:  Please RSVP to DFNYC at info -at- DFNYC.org.  We are in constant communication with the UPKNYC people and we'll be able to give you updates on bus pick up locations.

Why Do We Need to Go to Albany to Do Pre-K in NYC?

The UPK plan - to provide Pre-K to all 4 year olds and afterschool programs for middle school students - needs a dedicated funding stream. Mayor de Blasio has proposed a small marginal income tax increase on incomes over 1/2 million dollars a year, which would only apply to city residents in that tax bracket. However, due to "home rule" laws, Albany actually has to give NYC permission to raise it's own city taxes. So we need to convince legislators, many of whom are outside NYC, that they should vote to allow NYC to do this slight tax increase to pay for a very valuable program.

Media's Cuomo vs. de Blasio Narrative:

Many news articles about universal Pre-K have framed the UPK debate as a battle between Gov. Cuomo and Mayor de Blasio. It may appear as if they are both offering the same thing, with the only difference being that the Mayor wants to raise taxes and the Governor does not.  However, Gov. Cuomo's plan allocates an amount of money over 5 years that is a fraction of the cost of providing quality Pre-K in NYC, let alone the state. Also, if NYC's Pre-K funding comes from the state, it will be subjected to the yearly budget process in Albany, which makes it nearly impossible for providers and teachers to make plans and run their schools effectively.  We have admired Gov. Cuomo's decisions and policies on several issues, but in the area of UPK for NYC, we think a dedicated funding stream from a specific tax makes more sense. (To be clear, the UPKNYC coalition is independent and not part of the mayor's office.)

After asking DFNYC members for feedback, the overwhelming response was in favor of Mayor de Blasio's approach, so DFNYC has joined the UPKNYC coalition.