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EYE ON EARLY CHILDHOOD
September 2023
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As the child care funding cliff approaches, CLASP documents the impact of existing funds and highlights need for urgent action
Child care relief resources prevented the sector from collapsing. Relief dollars helped increase provider wages, expand income eligibility, and reduce out-of-pocket fees for families, among many other important achievements. This funding facilitated meaningful stabilization and advancements in child care and early education, but that progress is at stake as child care relief resources begin to expire on September 30th.
Over the last few months, we’ve talked with administrators [[link removed]] , advocates, providers, and parents and it is evident that the expiration of these resources will have significant consequences over the coming weeks, months, and years. This makes the need for sustained and increased investment in child care as clear as ever.
Recently, Senator Murray, Senator Sanders, and Representative Clark, along with many other members of Congress, introduced the Child Care Stabilization Act [[link removed]] to address this challenge and help keep providers and families afloat when funds expire. The bill would allocate $16 billion in mandatory funding each year for the next five years to help ensure child care providers can afford to keep their doors open. This comes at an important time as we approach the end of the fiscal year where potential funding is already challenged by political gridlock and spending restrictions from the debt ceiling bill.
CLASP remains focused on supporting states and families as the funding cliff approaches and continuing our broad advocacy to make the case for significant investment in many ways, including by documenting the impact [[link removed]] of these funds.
Read more about our team’s work documenting the need for increased and intentional investment and everything else we are up to below.
Featured Updates
Child Care and Development Fund Notice of Proposed Rulemaking Comments [[link removed]]
The Department of Health and Human Services released a notice of proposed rulemaking this summer aimed at improving the access and affordability of child care. Our team was proud to work with partners to develop joint public comments [[link removed]] and a sign on letter [[link removed]] supported by nearly 80 organizations.
read our public comments [[link removed]]
What you need to know
Making Copayments Affordable As Child Care Emergency Funding Expires [[link removed]]
Shira Small outlines ways states can make their copayments more affordable and understandable as the September 30th COVID relief funding cliff approaches.
Unified, Safe, and Well: Building Life-Affirming Systems for Justice-Impacted Families [[link removed]]
Deanie Anyangwe and Alycia Hardy analyze the landscape for family-based alternative sentencing programs to assess their effectiveness and demonstrate the need for alternatives to incarceration that address immediate needs for caregivers and children.
Child Care Assistance Spending & Participation in 2020 [[link removed]]
Alejandra Londono Gomez and Alyssa Fortner analyze national and state spending and participation data for CCDF- and TANF-funded child care for FY2020.
Pandemic Child Care Relief Funds: Documenting Impact Across Four States [[link removed]]
Rachel Wilensky, Alyssa Fortner, and Shira Small document the impact of COVID-19 relief funding in Louisiana, Michigan, New York, and Virginia through interviews with state administrators, advocates, providers, and parents.
All I Want for Father's Day is Paid Leave and Support for Caregiving [[link removed]]
Indivar Dutta-Gupta discusses the need for policies that support caregivers in the form of expanded access to child care, paid family leave, and more.
Expanding Access to Child Care Assistance: Opportunities in the Child Care and Development Fund [[link removed]]
Rachel Wilensky, Alejandra Londono Gomez, Alyssa Fortner, and Tiffany Ferrette offer states ways to improve child care access within the confines of the current law, focusing on modifications and improvements to access and eligibility-related policies.
How Presumptive Eligibility Can Help Families Access Child Care [[link removed]]
Alejandra Londono Gomez shares ways states can use presumptive eligibility to allow families to receive temporary child care assistance while their eligibility for the program is being determined. Read the accompanying FAQ here [[link removed]] .
Child Care for Working Families Act BASE Grants: State-by-State Estimates of $9 Billion in Proposed Funding [[link removed]]
Stephanie Schmit and Alycia Hardy explain how the Building an Affordable System for Early Education (BASE) grants provision of Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) and Representative Bobby Scott (D-VA)’s Child Care for Working Families Act could impact states’ funding.
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Recent Events
Centering Black Families: Equitable Discipline through Improved Data Policies in Child Care [[link removed]]
On September 12th, Tiffany Ferrette, Alycia Hardy, and Alyssa Fortner presented to the NC Coalition for Inclusion, Not Expulsions on the Centering Black Families: Equitable Discipline through Improved Data Policies in Child Care brief and state and federal recommendations to address harsh disciplinary practices.
The Urgent Need for Effective Child Care and ECE Policy Early Learning Nation Magazine [[link removed]]
On September 12th, Stephanie Schmit presented on the Grade Level Reading Learning Tuesdays [[link removed]] webinar co-sponsored by Early Learning Nation Magazine [[link removed]] , sharing insights on the development of the previous child care legislation and what was learned to improve future legislative attempts.
Workshop: How Parent Voices California Won Affordable Child Care [[link removed]]
On August 22nd, Tiffany Ferrette co-presented with advocates from Parent Voices California on a Child Care for Every Family Network [[link removed]] webinar to discuss a federal overview of child care copayments for families, and recent updates in the proposed rules [[link removed]] from the Administration for Children and Families. Tiffany also shared CLASP’s role in supporting states in advancing equitable child care policies.
Building Dynamic Relationships: Advocates and Administrators Collaborating in Child Care and Early Education [[link removed]]
On July 25th, Rachel Wilensky and Alyssa Fortner facilitated a webinar with state administrators and advocates to explore how they worked together to improve child care and early education systems in Michigan and New York.
Community-Driven Change: How Advocates Changed Early Childhood Education In New Mexico [[link removed]]
On July 24th, Alejandra Londono Gomez moderated a webinar featuring child care leaders in New Mexico discussing how states can leverage community organizing and power to facilitate meaningful advancements in child care. Click here [[link removed]] for the Spanish recording.
Did you know?
The child care sector received more than $50 billion in child care relief funds in 2020.
The child care sector received more than $50B in child care relief resources starting in 2020. See what is at stake [[link removed]] when a majority of the resources expire at the end of this month.
Media Mentions
MARKETPLACE
Child care is about to get even more expensive as pandemic funds end [[link removed]]
THE AMERICAN PROSPECT
The Looming Child Care Cliff [[link removed]]
EDUCATION WRITERS ASSOCIATION
How to Cover Disparities in Early Childhood Education Systems [[link removed]]
THE HECHINGER REPORT
With emergency funding drying up, child care is once again on the precipice [[link removed]]
State Policy Social Media Highlights
Louisiana's Implementation of Child Care Relief Funds
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COVID Emergency Funding Implementation in New York
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Child Care Relief Funding's Impact on Michigan's ECE Workforce
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Meet the Team
[[link removed]] Meet Alisha Saxena, our team’s newest Policy Analyst! Read about her background, interests, and expertise here [[link removed]] .

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CLASP
1310 L St. NW, Suite 900
Washington, DC xxxxxx
United States