Child Care
Should Vermont’s child care solution be every state’s?
Legislation passed last year may show a path forward as states across the country look to tackle child care crisis.
A bigger child tax credit isn’t coming. The Senate just voted against it.
The bill, which passed the House earlier this year, would have aided 16 million children. But Senate Republicans said it could disincentivize work and hand the election to Democrats.
This Montana school solved its teacher shortage by opening a day care
On-site day cares are being used as a recruitment tool. Turns out, they help more than just the teachers.
A new initiative looks to combine child care and care for older adults under one roof
As child care and long-term care facilities face critical shortages, a grant program in Nebraska seeks to incentivize nursing homes to offer both services in the same building.
States shift toward kin-first foster care
Kinship caregivers and advocates have long expressed frustration at unequal support for raising their own.
Microchip companies need federal grant money. They’re rolling out child care to get it.
To draw women into the semiconductor and construction industries, the CHIPS Act requires companies to provide child care. But will it boost the supply of care, or exacerbate an existing crisis?
‘We can’t exist without child care’: Rural towns use state funding to open local centers
State grants are infusing over $3.7 million into helping rural communities build collaborative, innovative solutions to address child care needs across South Dakota.
States are required to background check child care workers. Many are falling short.
Dozens of states are out of compliance with at least one component of a federal law’s requirements, a congressional report found. But the problems are so complicated, it’s unclear if anyone has a solution.
Some low-wage earners must choose between pay raises and government assistance
Lawmakers in North Carolina heard from experts about the “benefits cliff” and how other jurisdictions are developing strategies to lessen its impact on low-income families.
Congress finally approves spending budget, nearly six months late
The vote in the House and Senate averts a shutdown and brings funding certainty. But several programs significant to state and local governments will see cuts.
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Spending package cuts grants to cities to help with influx of migrants
The six spending bills also fail to fund internet subsidies and security for places of worship.
Biden proposes 'historic new program' to address child care shortages
In his budget, the president is asking Congress for more money for child care and the restoration of several pandemic-era programs, including the full child care tax expansion.
White House beefs up child care block grants
A new rule caps the total amount low-income families have to pay for child care at 7% of their income and directs states to pay child care providers more fairly and on time.
As pandemic aid winds down, states scramble to fill gaps
COVID-19 left a lasting mark on a few sectors, with schools, public transit and child care providers facing fiscal cliffs as federal funding dries up. State legislators, many already grappling with shortfalls, are looking for solutions.
House passes bipartisan tax bill
The measure restores some of the popular expanded child tax credit, as well as a credit that helps states build affordable housing.
Child care gaps in rural America threaten to undercut small communities
Communities with child care deserts, or areas with an insufficient supply of child care providers, could see fewer working adults and poorer educational and behavioral health outcomes for children.
Child care programs see closures, resignations and tuition hikes after federal funding expires
In West Virginia, providers and parents are feeling the impact on the other side of the "child care cliff."
City leaders fund child care center with tax district typically used for roads, sewer
By creating a tax increment financing district, Madison, South Dakota, looks to build a child care center to improve local economic development and access to child care services.
‘Who’s going to work there?’: Lawmakers grapple with labor shortages
Affordable housing, reliable child care and available mental health services could be the key for state and local governments desperate to fill vacant job positions in their communities. Lawmakers are finding ways to meet workers' needs through legislation and funding.
In a hostile housing landscape, solutions emerge to support home-based child care providers
From the establishment of “child care-friendly landlords” to the construction of low-cost homes earmarked specifically for home-based providers, projects are underway to offer a salve to providers struggling to find and afford adequate housing.
