Karen Schulman, Senior Policy Analyst

The National Women's Law Center's annual report on state child care assistance policies, Downward Slide: State Child Care Assistance Policies Report 2012, examined policies that are critical in determining families' access to child care assistance and the extent of help they receive from that assistance — income eligibility limits, waiting lists, parents copayments, provider reimbursement rates, and eligibility for parents searching for a job. The report found that families in 27 states were worse off in February 2012 than in February 2011 under one or more of these child care assistance policies, and families in 17 states were better off under one or more of these policies. Yet this tells only part of the story. Many other policies affect whether families can get help affording high-quality child care. These policies are particularly important to highlight since a number of states have recently made changes to them — some positive, some negative. The Center's new fact sheet, On the Edges: Child Care Assistance Policies that Affect Parents, Providers, and Children, describes some of these policies and provides a few examples of recent state policy changes.

Some states have adopted changes to their eligibility policies that make it more difficult for families to receive child care assistance. For example, Kansas began requiring that most adults receiving child care assistance be employed a minimum of 20 hours per week (unless they meet criteria for exemption). Nevada no longer provides child care assistance for parents in education or training programs (except for minor parents working toward their high school diploma or GED). These policy changes can create barriers for parents who are just starting a job and only have limited hours or parents who are trying to get the education they need for better-paying, more stable employment — parents who are trying to gain more secure financial footing, but who can only do that if they have child care that allows them to work.

Families in 27 states were worse off under one or more key state child care assistance policies in 2012 than in 2011 and better off in just 17 states, according a new report from the National Women’s Law Center. This was the second year in row with negative news for families needing help paying for child care. Families in 37 states were worse off under one or more policies in 2011 than in 2010, and better off in only 11 states.

The new report, Downward Slide: State Child Care Assistance Policies 2012, examines state policies as of February 2012 in five important areas—income eligibility limits for child care assistance, waiting lists for child care assistance, copayments for families receiving child care assistance, reimbursement rates for child care providers, and eligibility for child care assistance while a parent searches for a job. Gaps in these policies leave many families without access to child care assistance or without the level of assistance they need to afford good-quality care for their children.