“Child Care Aware® of America is pleased to support the Child Care Modernization Act and thanks Senator Deb Fischer (R-NE), Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Senator John Hickenlooper (D-CO), and Senator Susan Collins (R-ME) for their leadership updating the Child Care and Development Block Grant, the primary federal program that helps working families afford child care,” said Susan Gale Perry, Chief Executive Officer at Child Care Aware® of America. “With the national annual price of child care at an average of $13,128, we know that child care is out of reach for many families across the country. The Child Care Modernization Act recognizes that we must do more to make child care more affordable and more available, and alongside strong investments in our child care system would move us forward towards that goal.” 

Arlington, VA—Child Care Aware® of America (CCAoA) has released the State Session Round-Up: Summer 2025, a review of state legislative action on child care. The report finds that many states made historic investments and policy innovations in 2025 and continue to lead the way in creative child care supply and demand side policy solutions and investments.  

Child Care Aware® of America is pleased to support the reintroduction of the Child Care for Working Families Act and thanks Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) and Representative Bobby Scott (D-VA) for their leadership on behalf of our country’s children, families, child care providers, and communities. 81% of parents say that expanding access to affordable, quality child care should be a top or high priority for both federal and state policymakers—thank you Senator Murray and Representative Scott for acting on parents’ priorities.  

Arlington, VA—A new report released today by Child Care Aware® of America and the Buffett Early Childhood Institute at the University of Nebraska reveals that America’s child care system is failing families, providers, and the economy, but notably, this call for change is no longer coming just from parents and those inside the child care field. 

Washington, D.C.—With the release of the Trump Administration’s full Fiscal Year 2026 Budget request, Susan Gale Perry, Chief Executive Officer at Child Care Aware of America, issued the following statement:   

Washington, D.C. – Following the House of Representatives’ passage of their budget reconciliation bill, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (H.R. 1), Susan Gale Perry, Chief Executive Officer at Child Care Aware of America, issued the following statement:   

Research suggests that a child’s first year is a critical window for brain development. A study published in 2022 on the effects of cash support on low-income families found that when parents received $333 a month, the babies’ brains showed brain activity that is associated with higher cognitive development.

Studies have also shown that boosting financial assistance for families can reduce child poverty, cut gender pay inequity and lower infant mortality rates.

“Kids learn the most they’ll ever learn in their lives in those first few years,” said Anne Hedgepeth, chief of policy at research agency Child Care Aware of America. “It pays off in the long run.”

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