While the path to passing the Build Back Better (BBB) Act has come with its fair share of challenges and setbacks, there is still momentum in Congress to pass the investments in affordable, high-quality child care and mixed-delivery preschool.  

The American Rescue Plan (ARP) Act allocated $39 billion in dedicated child care relief funding to states. The ARP Act funds began to flow to states during spring 2021, with the intention to get funds out the door and provide relief to providers and families as quickly as possible.  

On Thursday, October 28, President Biden announced a new framework for the Build Back Better Act, which includes $400 billion for child care and early learning investments over the next 6 years. If the Build Back Better Act is signed into law, it will dramatically transform the child care and early learning system for nearly every family with young children, as well as for child care providers.  

The Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) program is a state and federal partnership used to provide assistance to low-income families to access child care, as well as build supply and improve program quality. Since 2016, states, territories and tribes have been required to outline how they will use this dedicated federal funding over a three-year period. Plans cover a multitude of areas, including how states will promote family engagement and consumer outreach, ensure equal program access, establish health and safety standards, recruit and retain a qualified workforce and support continuous quality improvement.

The pandemic has resulted in state and federal policymakers taking notice of the essential role child care plays. Child care has been prioritized as an issue desperately needing support and has been included in each of the three relief packages to date. But relief funds have only provided temporary solutions for the child care system and are just the beginning of what is needed to recover and rebuild after decades of underfunding. Federal policymakers are listening and are in the midst of considering additional funds to sustain child care long-term.

Year after year, CCAoA’s annual research report has found that the price of child care is too high for too many families. The good news is that change may be coming. Earlier this year, President Biden proposed big investments in child care and preschool. This month, Congress has put pen to paper and crafted legislation, called the Build Back Better Act, to make those investments a reality.