Assemblyman Brian Maher (R,C-Walden) today praised the final passage of legislation (A.4003) that aligns infant supervision standards for home-based childcare providers with those in childcare centers—a critical reform that will ease burdens for family daycare providers across New York State.

This bipartisan bill, which passed both the Assembly and Senate, addresses long-standing disparities in staffing standards and will help increase access to quality infant care with a higher age to help open slots in daycare facilities—especially in underserved rural communities. The legislation now heads to Governor Kathy Hochul's desk to be signed into law.

“This bill is a game-changer for countless family daycare centers, particularly in the rural communities I represent,” said Maher. “Our local providers have been doing more with less for too long and often carrying unfair staffing burdens that made it difficult to serve families in need. This will not only level the playing field, it increases access to safe, reliable infant care at a time when young families across upstate New York are struggling to find it.”

By using the OCFS’s definition of an infant and aligning standards across provider types, the legislation helps ensure fairness, improve operational clarity, and bolster childcare capacity across the state.