Early Education and Economic Recovery: What's the Latest and What's Next

by Karen Schulman, Senior Policy Analyst
National Women’s Law Center

Today, the Senate passed its version of an economic recovery package  by a vote of 61-37. Like the House version, it includes substantial investments in early care and education — investments that are necessary for children trying to get a strong start, for parents trying to work and support their families, for child care providers trying to keep their jobs, for child care programs trying to keep their doors open, and for economic recovery and future growth. The House and Senate now head to conference to negotiate on a compromise bill that both can approve.

It is important that the Senate retain the full $2 billion increase for the Child Care and Development Block Grant in the House bill and in the original Senate bill. This decision indicates that members of Congress recognize what is happening in their states and communities — parents straining to afford child care and unable to get help with these costs, child care providers scaling back their hours or losing their jobs, and child care programs struggling to stay in business. A broad coalition is urging Senators and Representatives to maintain this funding level in the final bill in order to provide child care assistance for parents under tremendous financial strains, jobs for teachers and others working or seeking to work in child care programs, and safe, stable, nurturing care for children.

The news for Head Start is less encouraging. The bill passed by the Senate provides $1.05 billion, which is half the amount provided by the House bill.  We would like the final bill to include the full amount included in the House bill ($2.1 billion), because Head Start and Early Head Start are investments that will help our economy in the short and long term. These programs employ teachers, directors, and support staff—many of whom are lower-income women.  They assist parents in finding and keeping a job or getting job training. They help children get a strong start on a path to a productive future. Head Start and Early Head Start, with their focus on low-income children and families, are particularly important as the economic downturn causes more families to slip into poverty. Why would we help only half as many of these teachers, children, and families as we could?

Both the House and Senate bills include a number of other provisions to support early care and education, although the bills differ in several respects. In some cases, the House version is stronger — for example, the House includes $726 million for Afterschool Meals to expand the availability of dinners for children in after-school programs, while the Senate does not. In other cases, the Senate version is stronger — for example, the Senate provides $5.5 billion for targeted assistance and $5.5 billion for education finance incentive grants to local school districts and requires that they use at least 15 percent of this funding for programs for children prior to the age of school entry.  

It is essential that Congress act quickly to pass economic recovery legislation because families struggling to hold on to their jobs and homes cannot wait much longer. As the President has said, “We can’t allow the perfect to be the enemy of the absolutely necessary.”  But we hope that the conference committee will do the best they possibly can in supporting early care and education investments that benefit children, families, and communities. 

Comments

[eve isk]

*yawn* I think this is just another way to soak more money out of it, unfortunatly.

[maple story mesos]

It is essential that Congress act quickly to pass economic recovery legislation because families struggling to hold on to their jobs and homes cannot wait much longer.