WEST HARTFORD, Conn. (WFSB) - Families could soon see major relief from some of the highest childcare costs in the country.

On Thursday, Gov. Ned Lamont is scheduled to announce that the state will expand early care and education programs, making childcare free for thousands of children.

The new initiative, called Early State CT, will allow families earning less than $100,000 a year to send their children to pre-K at no cost.

Families making more than $100,000 annually will pay no more than seven percent of their income toward childcare.

Funding will come from Connecticut’s Early Childhood Education Endowment Fund, which now holds $300 million.

State officials say the program will ultimately cover 16,000 children, with at least 35 percent of the new slots dedicated to infants and todd

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