Even though the child care system faces challenges there are paths forward. Sustainable child care isn’t just possible—it’s achievable, if we act together. Experts discussed these paths forward during a Congressional briefing held by Child Care Aware® of America (CCAoA) and the Buffet Early Childhood Institute on September 10, 2025 to examine how to use what we have learned to improve the child care system.
Congressional staffers, federal officials, and other attendees listened as national economists and early childhood experts shared data-driven solutions and policy recommendations from our recent Economics & Child Care Report, demonstrating that child care is essential infrastructure for families, businesses, and the broader economy.
Key topics included:
Linda Smith, Director of Policy at the Buffett Institute moderated the discussion. Panelists included Susan Gale Perry, CEO, Child Care Aware® of America; Rupa Datta, Vice President and Distinguished Senior Fellow, NORC at the University of Chicago; Jason Fichtner, Executive Director, The Retirement Income Institute, Alliance for Lifetime Income; and Chris Herbst, Foundation Professor, Arizona State University School of Public Affairs.
To have a viable child care system that meets families’ needs, we need supply-side strategies in addition to demand-side strategies—a key message that came out of the briefing on Capitol Hill. Speakers emphasized that federal subsidies are key to helping working families, especially low income, afford child care. At CCAoA we know that CCR&Rs are critical to implementing those strategies; they work directly in communities to build child care supply and to support parents in finding and affording child care.