Federal Child Care Program Nabs $550M Boost in End-of-Year Spending Bill

THE CHILD CARE AND Development Block Grant, the federal program that helps offset the costs of child care for low-income families, is slated to get a major, half-billion dollar boost in the end-of-year spending bill.

According to a source familiar with the agreement, the $1.7 trillion bipartisan spending bill will include an additional $550 million for the child care program, bringing the total to $5.8 billion.

The increase comes at a time when the average cost of care for an infant exceeds annual in-state tuition and fees at colleges and universities in 30 states and Washington, D.C. The issue of providing access to child care and prekindergarten programs has generated attention among policymakers as research shows how lack of access to such services hampers women's ability to return to work or progress in careers and also hurts families' ability to spend on other expenses, like prescription drugs and groceries.

The federal child care program has notched some big funding victories in recent years, including in 2018, when Congress supercharged the program, increasing federal funding from $2.9 billion to $5.2 billion - an increase that came after years of cuts to funding and historic decreases in enrollment.

In 2015, fewer than 1.4 million children received child care through the federal program, the smallest number of children served ever.

The new funding boost included in the end-of-year spending bill, which lawmakers are expected to make public Monday, has been a major priority for Democrats, including many of the Democratic presidential candidates who have made child care a central part of their platforms.

Warren's plan would provide free daycare for any family that makes less than 200% of the federal poverty line and "affordable" daycare for any family over that 200% threshold at rates that are capped at no more than 7% of that family's income. Under the proposal, the federal government would partner with local providers to create a network of child care options. Local communities would be in charge, but providers would be held to high national standards.