key takeaway
California’s child care system already falls short of meeting families’ needs, and a proposed change to federal child care funding could further limit access for one-parent families.
Families and children need access to nurturing, affordable child care programs that best meet their needs. California’s publicly funded child care programs provide access to child care at low-to-no cost across a variety of settings, including homes, centers, and schools for diverse families across California.
How do federal Child Care and Development Fund dollars support California’s child care programs?
The child care programs administered by the California Department of Social Services (CDSS) are partially funded by the federal Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF). Specifically, CCDF funding comprises approximately one in five dollars for these programs, reflecting a critical source of support for low-to-no cost child care for low- and middle-income families in California.
How might the proposal to expand the use of CCDF dollars impact California’s families?
The Trump Administration proposed to use CCDF dollars to provide subsidies to married-couple families with stay-at-home spouses in certain income brackets to care for their children. In other words, children from one-parent families would not be eligible for this proposed subsidy, thus reducing CCDF funding for families who face unsustainably high child care costs and limited access to publicly funded child care. If the Trump administration implements this proposal without working with Congress to increase funding levels, families will have an even harder time accessing affordable child care.
The unmet need for publicly funded child care remains alarmingly high due to a decades-long pattern of underfunding. In California, the potential impact of this federal proposal would be significant given 55% of children in California eligible for publicly funded child care are in one-parent families. Additionally, among Californians utilizing CCDF dollars, 75% are one-parent families.
All children and families, regardless of household composition, deserve choices for accessing the affordable child care option that is best for them. Proposals to limit options and reduce access for one-parent families harm California’s children and reverse progress on expanding access to the state’s affordable child care programs.
