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By Shira Small with support from Charis Davis, DéJon Banks, Sr., and Sonja Lennox 

What’s the best way to create child care policies that work for families and providers? Give them a seat at the table. In October 2024, the Administration for Children and Families released guidance to help state child care policy makers do just that. The guidance affirms that Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) and Preschool Development Grant Birth through Five (PDG B-5) funding can be used to engage people who have lived experience with the child care subsidy system and provides best practices on how to implement effective and equitable community engagement. This includes both parents and providers, with the guidance recognizing that gathering community feedback is a key component of improving the quality of services.  

We partnered with three parent advocates from the United Parent Leaders Action Network (UPLAN) to write this blog and elevate the importance of parent voice in the state child care policy making process. Their message is clear: collecting data from directly impacted groups is not enough. To implement meaningful, community-driven policy solutions, policymakers owe parents transparency, trust building, and action. Bridging the gap between those creating policy and those impacted by it is long overdue. 

Charis Davis, Ohio Parent Advocacy Network: Without parent voice, we are left with old rules and outdated laws from older individuals, mostly men, that no longer understand the position and economy that we are facing. They don’t understand what it is like to raise children today. It’s important that people get to see this guidance so more entities can start engaging with parents. To build trust, there needs to be a clear starting point/understanding and communication between all parties involved. If parents have a request, states should be transparent about what they can do, how they can do it, and work together to figure out a solution. We need transparency. Transparency is essential!  

DéJon Banks, Sr., UPLAN: Decisions about us cannot be made without us. A lot of things are happening behind closed doors. There need to be direct connections between community groups and the state so that the state is coming to recruit them and bring them to the table for this engagement. Engage them at the ground level. Come to the groups where they are. When we try to speak to people in government, we get a secretary or assistant, but high-ups need to be available, so people feel heard and connected and that decision makers are actually with them. It’s hard for decision makers to deny and hide when we as parents are holding people accountable by being part of the process, which this guidance can help with. 

Sonja Lennox, Washington State Parent Ambassadors: Parents should be at all tables where decisions are being made, especially when it is about them. Parents’ experiences make decision makers realize things that they are missing. With the guidance, people can see it and think of problems in a new way and how policy will affect parents and families. I think the advice that I would give people trying to start engaging parent voices is to start doing focus groups and make sure they are diverse in all demographics. Ask them what is and isn’t working well with this policy, how would you change it, and how would changing it impact you, your family, and your community? And there needs to be a stipend or something else given that says: we value your voice and opinion. To build trust, states need to walk their talk. Do what you say you’re going to do.   

The guidance includes the following recommendations: 

The expertise of families and early educators is critical to creating effective policy. This guidance is a helpful resource and starting place for states looking to gather feedback from people who have experience with the subsidy system, and states should prioritize co-designing engagement opportunities with parents and providers and/or consulting them about their needs. To create a more equitable child care system, parents and providers should have a role in setting the table, not only sitting at it.  

CLASP would like to thank Sonja Lennox, Charis Davis, and DéJon Banks, Sr. with UPLAN for providing their expertise to help draft this blog. 

This statement can be attributed to Cemeré James, interim executive director of the Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP)

Washington, D.C., January 28, 2025 – Last night, President Trump announced unprecedented funding freezes for programs that serve people in every congressional district. By cutting off agency grant and loan programs without any notice, the Trump Administration is harming families, children, workers, and communities across the country—and imperiling our nation’s economy.

We are glad to see that numerous state attorneys general and others are challenging the legality of this attempt to override the will of Congress, which has already authorized and appropriated these funds. Congress, not the President, is empowered by the Constitution to determine how the federal government spends its funds. Even so, the harm and chaos that these freezes are already causing and will continue to inflict on popular, impactful programs like community health centers, child care subsidies, and Meals on Wheels cannot be overstated. Moreover, the administration is planning to permanently defund some programs based on arbitrary assessments of whether they meet an ideological purity test.

This power grab will affect not just the individuals and families who rely on these programs and funds but also workers in sectors all over the country. Even if funding is eventually restored, programs may not be able to meet payroll or pay their rent, and the uncertainty has significant, immediate impacts inflicting fear, confusion, and challenges. The hardworking people who look out for others in their communities are at risk of losing their livelihoods because the Trump Administration has put more focus on cutting taxes for its billionaire allies than protecting children, seniors, veterans, and millions of other Americans.

We urge the administration to reverse course and ensure that funds already appropriated by law are allocated to programs relying on them.

By Rachel Wilensky and Stephanie Schmit

On December 20, 2024, President Biden signed the American Relief Act, 2025 into law. In lieu of passing a full new budget for Fiscal Year (FY) 2025, Congress passed this continuing resolution, which will keep the government funded at FY2024 levels through March 14, 2025. Among other additions, the law included an additional $500 million for the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG). Half of this funding is reserved for necessary expenses directly related to the consequences of major disasters and emergencies that will go to states impacted by these events. The other $250 million is designated as emergency discretionary funding to be made as payments to all states.

The Office of Child Care in the Administration for Children and Families has published the allocations for states for the $250 million that is designated for all states from the American Relief Act, or ARA. These allocations often help state administrators and advocates understand and plan for the resources that will soon come their way. The state funding allocations distribution for major disasters and emergencies (the additional $250 million allocated through the ARA) has not yet been released and is not included in these numbers.

CCDBG is a critical support for families with low incomes who, without access to assistance, would likely be unable to afford their current child care arrangements. However, due to limited federal funding, the program was only able to serve 15 percent of eligible children in 2021. The annual appropriations process is an important opportunity to increase federal investments in programs that respond to additional need and ensure funding keeps up with rising inflation.

The additional funding for CCDBG included in the ARA is vital for communities recovering from natural disasters and for the child care sector as a whole, which continues to face the financial challenges of maintaining and building on the positive improvements from the pandemic relief funding. However, the amount allocated is hardly enough to cover the costs of inflation from the previous year.

As concerns about economic recovery, unemployment, and inflation persist, significant and sustained increases in annual discretionary funding remain a critical support. In addition, given the fragile nature of the child care sector caused in part by decades of insufficient federal funding, the need for long-term and sustainable increases for child care remains ever present. More resources for child care and early education are urgently needed. As Congress works to finish the FY25 appropriations process and begins the FY26 appropriations process, federal lawmakers must center the real needs of children, families, and providers in funding decisions.

 

Updated Feb 14, 2025 by Priya Pandey

Originally published in 2019 by Rebecca Ullrich and updated in February 2022 by Alejandra Londono Gomez

Early childhood programs play an important role in the lives of young children and their families. But in our current political climate, families across the country are questioning whether it’s safe to attend or enroll.

In January 2025, the Trump Administration rescinded the Biden Administration’s guidelines for Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection enforcement actions in certain “protected areas.” Immigration enforcement actions had previously been restricted at or near these locations, which include early childhood programs such as licensed child care, preschool, pre-kindergarten, and Head Start programs.

In response, we have updated “A Guide to Creating ‘Safe Space’ Policies for Early Childhood Programs,” which gives practitioners, advocates, and policymakers information and resources to design and implement “safe space” policies that safeguard early childhood programs against immigration enforcement, as well as protect families’ safety and privacy. The guide also includes sample policy text that early childhood providers can adapt for their programs.

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This statement can be attributed to Olivia Golden, interim executive director of the Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP)

Washington, D.C., January 21, 2025 – Today, the Acting Department of Homeland Security Secretary Benjamine Huffman issued a press statement regarding a directive published yesterday rescinding the protected areas policy. This policy has been in place in various forms since 2011. It has limited Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Patrol activities in and near hospitals, schools, child care centers, houses of worship, food pantries, homeless and domestic violence shelters, disaster relief efforts, and other places that provide essential services. The directive ends the limitation and allows immigration enforcement agents to carry out actions in such locations constrained only by their interpretation of “common sense.”

This action could have devastating consequences for immigrant families and their children, including U.S. citizen children, deterring them from receiving medical attention, seeking out disaster relief, attending school, and carrying out everyday activities. Without the policy in place, immigration agents will be able to carry out enforcement actions in such places, which our own research has shown can result in arrests near child care programs and schools. Should ICE presence near such locations become more common, the likelihood also increases that children could witness a parent’s detention, arrest, or other encounters with ICE agents. Such exposure can harm children’s mental and physical health and negatively impact their long-term development.

This action may also have serious consequences for the health and well-being of educators and other providers who themselves are immigrants, including 1 in 5 early care and education providers. During the first Trump Administration, these providers reported being overwhelmed by the impact of anti-immigration rhetoric, the constant change in immigration policies, and heightened stress. Providers who were immigrants had additional concerns about their own families’ well-being.

Ending the protected areas policy also has a destabilizing effect on entire communities. Children who witness threats to their classmates, parents, teachers, and care providers may not be able to thrive and meet developmental milestones. Many places that families and children rely on for community and friendship, such as schools, Head Start centers, child care programs, and places of worship, could suddenly become targets, leaving the community as a whole traumatized and paralyzed by the threats of immigration enforcement. Compromising access to these supports in the midst of an onslaught of other immigration policies serves to only further undermine the safety and well-being of immigrant families and communities. And when some of us are not comfortable seeking out health care, we all are less healthy.

CLASP has worked for years to advocate for state and national policies that ensure people are able to access the supports and services they need to thrive. We have also created materials for child care providers, early childhood educators, and schools, no matter the political climate. We urge early childhood providers to consult our resource guide for ways to keep their centers as protected as possible from immigration enforcement, stay informed about their rights, and avoid giving in to the intimidation inherent in these efforts.  We also call on Congress to pass federal legislation to codify the protected areas policy, and we urge state and local policymakers to consider legislation and other policies to restrict immigration enforcement actions in these critical places.

 

 

By Shira Small

Across the country, parents, providers, and Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) administrators are struggling with a child care sector that doesn’t fully meet families’ needs or support the child care workforce. To discuss the state of child care, key progress that has been made, and the work yet to be done, we brought together a virtual panel of child care experts for a webinar series in October in partnership with Economic Policy Institute’s Economic Analysis and Research Network. These experts were:

To build on the knowledge and insight they offered during the webinar, this Q&A uplifts the panelists’ reflections on how their states are strengthening the child care sector and addressing the inequities that make child care less accessible for people of color and people with low incomes. Policy must be informed by people directly impacted by it, and we are grateful that our panelists were willing to share their perspectives on the change needed to create a more equitable, accessible, and affordable child care system.

Question for the full panel: We know that the state of child care is challenging across the country, though the needs of families and the workforce differ state to state. What does child care access look like in your state or community?

Belvie: Although Delaware boasts a mixed delivery system offering families choices, the demand for quality child care outweighs the supply. According to the Rodel Foundation, as of May 2024 the total licensed capacity statewide was 53,640 but the estimated number of children aged zero to nine was 109,075. The annual price for center-based infant care in Delaware is $14,995 or $1,250 per month, and $10,146 for home-based infant care or $846 per month. To put these figures into perspective, the annual in-state undergraduate tuition for Delaware State University is currently $8,358! We’re currently enhancing the state eligibility system to include a child care waitlist function.

Carol: The pandemic shined a light on the huge need for affordable child care, but that need was huge before and it still is. We estimate that Mississippi is currently only serving about 30 percent of the children in families who qualify for child care assistance. This means a huge increase in public funding is needed to serve more eligible families. Our state doesn’t invest in CCDF (beyond the required state match) or Head Start, and we don’t have a statewide pre-K program. So, we push for increased investment in CCDF, such as using federal TANF welfare funds, and workforce funds, that can be used to expand services to serve more eligible families.

Charis: Child care access is a significant obstacle to Ohio women participating in the workforce. A lot of parents and mothers can’t stay in the workforce because there is no child care for them. For single-income families, the lack of affordable care can make a parent stay home and need government assistance, when affordable child care would help them stay in the workforce. There are families I know that barter, staying at work longer so their employer takes a little off their child care costs, in order to pay their bills. And it’s not fair that you have to stay away from your family longer to try to afford care.

Kristi: In New Orleans, child care access remains a critical challenge, particularly for low-income families. Programs like Early Head Start, Louisiana’s Child Care Assistance Program, and City Seats aim to expand access, but limited funding and a shortage of high-quality centers create barriers. Initiatives like the Early Childhood Education Fund provide critical support, yet the demand far exceeds available resources. Providers also face staffing shortages and low wages, impacting their ability to meet community needs. Expanding investments in subsidized seats, increasing teacher pay, and supporting infrastructure improvements are essential to ensuring all families can access affordable, quality child care.

Question for Belvie: As an administrator, what do you think needs to happen to create sustainable change within child care?

To witness a sustainable change in the child care sector it will take more than funding! We need to shift the paradigm and the way we think about child care. The initial way to do so is to change the language we use. Instead of using the term “child care,” we need to refer to the industry in broader terms such as the use of the term “early care and education.” My belief is that once the paradigm shift takes place, early care and education professionals will become a part of the country’s K-12 system and will receive the same salaries and benefits that [those educators] receive. Unless and until we make this complete paradigm shift and begin to think about early care and education in this broader way rather than simply “child care,” the system will remain a broken one.

Question for Carol: What is one accomplishment you are most proud of in your work over the last few years that improved child care in Mississippi?

That is an easy question – there is absolutely no contest for the answer! Last year we succeeded in removing a child support requirement from our state’s child care assistance program. We worked 19 years for this. The state imposed a requirement that was not federally required, that single parents had to cooperate with child support enforcement in order to qualify for child care assistance. This policy deterred the parents who needed child care assistance most. Since this change went into effect, the state has reported that over 17,000 children have gotten child care assistance who wouldn’t have qualified to receive assistance before this change.

Question for Charis: What do you, as a parent and advocate, think is most needed to get to transformative change that meets the needs of children and families?

Transparency. If parents have an ask, and policymakers can’t meet that ask, that needs to be said. Focus groups help give parents a voice and a seat at the table so there is no question what parents need and what we’re asking for. That way policymakers can see the information and the statistics about parents’ needs and move forward from there knowing what we want. Parents not having a seat at the table doesn’t just impact if we can afford child care, but it concerns the education and quality of care our children get. Transparency affects it all.

Question for Kristi: At CLASP, we know that the best policies and programs are crafted with the people who are most likely to be impacted by them. From your perspective, how can providers and parents be better centered in the policy-making process?

Providers and parents must have a seat at the table during policy discussions to ensure their lived experiences shape decisions. Establishing advisory councils that include diverse stakeholders, conducting focus groups, and holding community listening sessions are crucial steps. Policies should be informed by real-world challenges, such as workforce shortages and affordability. Simplifying feedback mechanisms and compensating participants for their time shows respect for their contributions. Transparent communication and accountability from policymakers are essential to build trust. When parents and providers are empowered as co-creators, policies are more likely to address the actual needs of families and the child care workforce.

To learn more, the full webinar is available to view here.

CLASP comments on the proposed changes to the ACF-801: Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) Quarterly Case-Level Report and urges the Office of Child Care in the Administration for Children and Families to provide more publicly available CCDF data.

>> Read the comment here.

CLASP comments on the proposed changes to the ACF-800: Child Care and Development Annual Aggregate Report and urges the Office of Child Care in the Administration for Children and Families to provide more publicly available CCDF data.

>> Read the comments here.

This statement can be attributed to Olivia Golden, interim executive director of the Center for Law and Social Policy

Washington, DC, December 23, 2024—On Saturday, President Biden signed a continuing resolution (CR) funding the federal government through March 14, 2025. After placing a prior bipartisan agreement at risk to provide easier passage for future tax cuts for billionaires, House Republicans finally introduced the CR just hours before a potential federal government shutdown on Friday.

In addition to continuing the core public services that were placed at risk by the possibility of a shutdown, we are pleased that the short-term budget signed by President Biden provides important disaster relief funds, including support for child care access in areas recently devastated by natural disasters. With the shortage of early educators and affordable, accessible child care in the affected states, the costs of disaster recovery are too significant for any one family or employer to address on their own.

However, we are concerned that this short-term budget stripped out other important provisions included in the earlier, bipartisan CR. For example, the final proposal fails to include a key provision that would have reimbursed Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program recipients for benefits stolen through no fault of their own. We remain deeply concerned that the House majority prioritized the possibility of tax cuts for billionaires over the needs of working people. Yet we remain committed to advocating for policies that center workers, reduce poverty, and address the institutional and racial barriers faced by communities of color.

By Jackie Mader

EXCERPT

Partly as a result, only a fraction of families — about 10 percent — who are eligible under the federal recommendation actually get subsidies, according to the Center for Law and Social Policy. The variance in state policies means a family may qualify for child care assistance in one state, but not in another. In Ohio in 2023, for example, a family of three had to make less than $36,048 to get a voucher, while in Arkansas the cutoff that year was set about $17,000 higher — at $53,161.

>> Read the full article here