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Although all children should have access to affordable, high-quality child care, families across the country continue to struggle in affording the high costs while child care workers are paid poverty-level wages. The Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) (the primary federal funding source for child care subsidies) paired with Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) spending and other state investments, provide child care assistance to working families with low incomes. These dollars, however, are only sufficient to support a fraction (1 in 6) of eligible children and families.
In a new factsheet released today, CLASP details child care assistance participation and spending, including at the state level, based on the most recent, publicly released data. We find that in FY 2018 (with comparisons to FY 2017):
- Total combined spending on child care assistance—comprised of CCDBG and TANF-related funds—totaled $12.2 billion (6 percent increase).
- CCDBG expenditures for FY 2018 totaled $9.2 billion (7 percent increase).
- States spent $1.5 billion in federal TANF funds directly on child care (6 percent increase) and $1.4 billion in additional TANF Maintenance of Effort or MOE (MOE spending that exceeded the amount reported spent on CCDBG MOE).
- 1.3 million children received CCDBG-funded child care (a 1 percent increase).
- Only 258,248 providers accepted children with CCDBG subsides, an all-time low (and a 7 percent decrease).
FY 2018 brought the largest federal funding increase in CCDBG history—$2.4 billion. This analysis does not fully capture the impact of that investment since states have multiple years to spend the funds. The factsheet also does not capture the impact of COVID-19 on child care spending and participation. Yet we know the pandemic has exacerbated existing inequities and gaps in the child care system leaving many providers and families in impossible situations.
Providers, workers, and families urgently need relief from the COVID-19 pandemic. Looking beyond the pandemic, policymakers must ensure that child care is treated like the public good it is by making significant investments and using those resources to build a more equitable child care system.
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