Thursday, October 1, 2026
Gov. Kathy Hochul used her State of the State address Tuesday to frame 2026 as a year focused on affordability, public safety and social services, outlining a broad agenda that included universal child care, expanded housing investments, tougher gun regulations and continued support for congestion pricing.
“The state of the state of New York is strong, and we’re just getting started,” Hochul said.
At the center of her agenda is a push toward universal child care, saying the state would introduce new programs for 2-year-olds, while launching pilot programs across the rest of the state for children up to age 3. Her goal is to achieve universal prekindergarten for 4-year-olds statewide by 2028.
On gun safety, Hochul called for new restrictions on 3D-printed “ghost guns,” including a proposal requiring 3D printers sold in New York to include software that blocks the creation of firearms.
“You will no longer sell handguns that can be converted into automatic machine guns, that are able to fire 1,200 rounds per minute. Not here. Not in New York. That’s how we save lives and fight crime,” she said. “I’m proposing the first in the nation law requiring all 3D printers sold in the state of New York to include software that blocks the printer from creating a gun. It’s just common sense.”
Hochul pointed to what she described as progress on crime, saying the state had made “unprecedented investments in police and public safety – over $3 billion” and had “enacted the strongest gun laws in the nation.” “Four years later, crime is hitting record lows. Shootings, homicides, subway crime – all down. We’ll never be satisfied,” she said.
She also addressed immigration and congestion pricing, criticizing former President Donald Trump and the federal government’s approach. She said New York would ban the use of state resources to assist in federal immigration raids involving people who have not committed serious crimes and would bar U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents from entering schools, day cares, hospitals and houses of worship without a judicial warrant.
“Mr. President, the message is still the same, She said. “We will not bow to a wannabe king and the congestion pricing is staying on.”
Other proposals included investing an additional $250 million in affordable housing and $100 million in manufactured housing, limiting the use of artificial intelligence in political ads, cracking down on staged car accidents to reduce insurance costs, eliminating taxes on tips, expanding nuclear power capacity, restricting minors’ access to AI chatbots and strengthening protections against child predators on social media.
Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, Hochul’s opponent in this year’s gubernatorial race, sharply criticized the address.
“All I can tell you was it was the most unbelievable speech I’ve ever heard,” Blakeman said. “There was nothing in that speech that was believable. I thought I was watching a Saturday Night Live skit.”
Blakeman accused Hochul of failing to act during her time in office, particularly on child care. “Kathy Hochul, you’ve been Governor for four years. You haven’t done anything about child care. Now you’re talking about child care,” he said. “What I’m proposing is we should have tax credits for people who are working that have children. That’s a meaningful way to help people.”
He also blamed Hochul for population and business losses, saying, “There’s a reason why hundreds of thousands of people have left the state under your tenure,” and argued that New York needs “leadership in solving people’s problems.”
