The world of child care is about to experience a major shake-up — and its ripple effect will take a devastating toll on providers, parents, even the general economy. On Sept. 30, the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) is set to expire, leaving many parents who rely on child care in the lurch … and that’s just the tip of the iceberg.
The Impact of ARPA
ARPA was a $1.9 trillion economic stimulus bill passed by the United States Congress and signed into law by President Joe Biden on March 11, 2021. It allocated $39 billion to stabilize the child care sector, which had been devastated by the COVID-19 pandemic. The bill provided grants to child care providers to help them reopen, stay open, and operate safely, and expanded access to affordable child care by increasing funding for the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) and providing temporary assistance to families with child care costs. It also helped to improve the quality of child care by funding professional development for early educators, and supported the implementation of evidence-based early childhood education programs.
But now, the bad news: ARPA was a temporary measure. Its expiry date is looming — less than a week away — and experts fear its demise will mean an even bigger catastrophe facing the child care industry and the parents and children who need it.
Parents Are Already Stressed
According to a recent survey conducted on behalf of Mother Untitled by independent research firm Proof Insights, 1 in 3 working moms reported that they are “somewhat, very, or extremely likely to leave their jobs for stay-at-home parenthood in the next two years.” 62% of those moms cited the cost of child care as the reason. 59% of moms who are already staying at home say the price of child care is a barrier to entering (or re-entering) the workforce.
Additionally, Child Care Aware of America’s most recent child care landscape analysis shows that the cost of child care exceeds the cost of housing in most areas. In 41 states (plus the District of Columbia), the average annual price of child care for two children in a center exceeds the average annual mortgage payment by anywhere from 1% to 53%. And if you’re a renter in any of the 50 states, the cost exceeds annual rent payments by 24% to over 100%.
To note: these statistics are with ARPA in place. Every state leveraged its federal funding assistance — as well as their regular annual federal and state funding — to stabilizing the child care industry.
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The Fallout of ARPA’s Expiration
The impact of ARPA’s end will vary by state; regions where the child care industry is already more robust are likely to experience less fallout. But overall, the cutoff will have a profound effect, and no state will escape entirely unscathed.
Courtesy of The Century Foundation
The Century Foundation’s economic analysis of the child care cliff found that over 70,000 child care programs are likely to close, which means approximately 3.2 million children will lose their spots. The child care industry workforce will likely lose over 230,000 jobs. With more parents leaving jobs or reducing hours in the wake of ARPA’s expiration due to child care issues, American families are projected to lose $9 billion in annual earnings. And with less money coming in, people will be spending less, which also negatively impacts the economy of the entire nation.
Women and Families of Color Will Be Disproportionately Affected
Even though child care cliff has devastating effects on the U.S. as a whole, it disproportionately affects women and families of color. The workforce of the child care industry is majority-female, so women will be most impacted by program closures and job losses — not to mention that women are more likely to quit their jobs or cut their hours to stay home with their kids in response to child care issues. For single moms, it’s even worse, since they don’t have the luxury of quitting their job due to a lack of care. And according to the latest data released this month by the U.S. Census Bureau, the poverty rate for Black and Hispanic families is more than double the rate for white families — 17.1% and 16.9% respectively, compared to just 8.6% for whites. These families are more likely to rely on the affordable child care programs bolstered by ARPA. Moreover, families of color are more likely to live in areas with a shortage of child care programs. This means that these families may have difficulty finding child care — even when it is affordable. (Click here for a cool interactive map where you can see all the child care deserts in the United States.)
How to Advocate for Better Child Care
ARPA’s stabilization prevented the child care industry from collapsing altogether after the hard hit it took during the pandemic. But now that we’re on the precipice of the child care cliff, the sector will once again be in danger. So what can be done?
In short, we need elected officials to act — on local, state, and federal levels. As we know, grassroots efforts can make a big difference, so you can help in the following ways:
Join an advocacy group like one of these:
National Women’s Law Center
National Association for the Education of Young Children
Child Care Aware of America
Promise the Children
Let your local, state, and national officials know that child care is important to you and that you’re concerned about the impact of ARPA expiration. Ask them to support policies that make child care more affordable and accessible, such as increasing funding for the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) and providing tax breaks for families with child care costs. You can see a list of all the current child care initiatives at the Office of Child Care’s site here.
Gather information and present it to lawmakers during your advocacy journey. Child Care Aware’s Child Care Data Center allows you to see state- and county-specific information about child care supply, average cost, and more.
Use your vote — choose candidates who have a strong track record on child care issues.
If You Need Help With Child Care
Your local Child Care Resource and Referral Agency will help guide you in the right direction when it comes to finding and paying for quality care; you can enter your address here for a list of all the assistance agencies in your area. ChildCare.gov also provides a host of valuable information for finding child care (and what to do if you can’t) and getting financial assistance.
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