The Problem
High-quality childcare and early education is expensive to provide, just like high-quality K-12 education. Unlike K-12, however, families shoulder the burden of paying for it. Infant care in Minnesota costs more than tuition at the University of Minnesota.
Yet childcare providers are charging families the bare minimum they can to survive. Wages for childcare and early learning teachers are among the lowest of any profession. Many childcare teachers rely on partners with higher incomes to afford their lives.
Our Solution
To meet the goals of the Great Start for All Children Task Force to make childcare affordable and accessible for all families, high quality for all children, and a sustainable career for teachers, we need public funding.
In 2023’s legislative session, the legislature passed significant funding to address childcare needs, but the reality is that we need much, much more to reach the goals of affordable and accessible childcare and early learning for all families, high quality for children, and equitable wages and compensation for teachers.
In 2024, we have an opportunity to take a big step in childcare affordability for families. In our push to make progress, we will place the highest value on affordability proposals that:
Provide a transparent, progressive benefit to families prioritizing those closest to the existing benefits cliff.
Are as minimally burdensome as possible for providers and families, contributing to their short and long-term strength and stability.
Are quickly and easily implementable, prioritizing getting benefits to families in the fall of 2024.
Build toward the Great Start recommendations and the associated Great Start Scholarship framework that passed in 2023.