A new report from the Citizens' Committee for Children of New York (CCC) released this week said the social and economic disparities for city children got worse since the pandemic, despite the overall economy improving.
The biennial report, Keeping Track of New York City’s Children: 2024, highlights the urgent need for City officials to prioritize the needs of children and families in the fiscal 2025 budget to ensure an equitable pandemic recovery, according to a news release.
The report underscores the urgent need for government leaders to take action to lift incomes; stabilize housing; improve access to child care, youth services, and education; address the behavioral health crisis; and invest in strength-based approaches to support families, youth and communities, the nonprofit said.
The COVID-19 pandemic triggered an unprecedented spike in unemployment and income loss that heavily impacted low-income Black, Brown, and Asian households. While employment rates have since rebounded, recovery has been uneven, according to the report.
Incomes earned at the 80th percentile grew faster and greater in NYC than those earned at the 20th percentile of the income spectrum, leaving a $134,000 gap between the lowest and highest income groups.
A third of children live in households in which neither parent or guardian is working full-time. Among families with children, the highest child poverty rates are present in single-mother households, including 30% for Black children and 39% for Latiné children.
Persistent disparities across race, gender, sexual orientation, and immigration status have continued to adversely impact health outcomes for families with children. The pandemic worsened these inequities, particularly among communities of color, which experience higher rates of illness and mortality and a marked decrease in life expectancy. Black mothers account for only 18% of births in the city and make up 41% of pregnancy related deaths.
There is an uneven recovery when it comes to the early care and education of New York children. The report highlighted affordability and racial disparities for families – 93% of infants and 79% of toddlers are income-eligible for subsidized child care but not are enrolled. In communities with the most publicly funded programs, up to 4 children compete for 1 publicly funded ECE seat.
The number of children accessing public mental health services went down in all five boroughs since prior to the pandemic despite demonstrated needs. Over a third of high school sutdents report having symptoms of depression and there has been an increase in the share of high school youth reporting feeling sad and hopeless, with higher rates among female, transgender, and gay, lesbian and bisexual youth.
Even before the pandemic, the city’s housing market struggled to meet the needs of its most vulnerable populations. In 2023, NYC’s vacancy rate plummeted to an all-time low, with nearly one-third of New Yorkers facing severe rent burdens. Today, about one in three families with children live in overcrowded housing, and overcrowding is most common for Asian and Latiné households.
Despite promising trends in youth justice case outcomes, teen birth rates, and employment, there is still a pressing need for policy reform to address racial and age-based disparities young people face in New York City, from a rise in youth arrests to a marked increase in school policing, the report said.
Black and Latiné youth are disconnected from school and employment at more than double the rate of their white peers. Over 80% of NYPD interventions in schools addressed minor offenses or emotional distress.
“Keeping Track’s data and findings provide a robust framework to shape child advocacy priorities and inform budget and public policy decisions that ensure the well-being of all New Yorkers, especially our children and youth,” said Rimsha Khan, a research associate at CCC. “The data presented in our latest report illustrates an unequal pandemic recovery, revealing persistent disparities that Black, Latiné and Asian communities continue to face.”
Based on the data from Keeping Track, CCC is calling on New York City Mayor Eric Adams and the New York City Council, with support from borough-based and citywide elected leaders, to address heightened disparities and promote an equitable recovery in the FY 2025 budget, including reversing proposed cuts to early care and education, protecting the expansion of Pre-K and 3-K services and increasing investments in full-day, full-year seats and increasing investments in young families through guaranteed income programs in the city for low-income mothers with infants, as well as child welfare and youth justice-involved youth.
