Why It Matters
Only about one in eight children who qualify for federal child care help actually receives it. A House subcommittee that oversees early childhood education held a hearing Sept. 1 to examine what states are doing to close that gap, and whether Congress should change how it funds child care assistance. [](#ngr-fc18ef8d-90f0-4c7f-a24d-a93a61bf6af2)
The House Education and Workforce Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education heard from state officials and policy experts about approaches tried in Iowa, Kentucky, Tennessee and elsewhere. The hearing was the subcommittee's third this Congress focused on child care.
The Big Picture
The federal program at the center of the debate is the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG), which sends money to states to help low-income families pay for child care. Ranking Member Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR) said the program served roughly 921,000 children in 2025. Nearly 6.4 million eligible children went without help that year.
Chair Kevin Kiley (R-CA) said inadequate child care access costs households, businesses and tax revenues an estimated $200 billion to $300 billion over time. Bonamici described an Oregon constituent who quit her job because her entire paycheck would have gone toward child care. "Families who cannot find quality child care may reduce their hours, decline promotions, or leave the workforce," she said.
Federal pandemic-era relief funding temporarily helped states serve more children and stabilize providers. That money benefited an estimated 225,000 providers serving 10 million children before it expired.
Broader Context
Republicans and Democrats at the hearing agreed that the shortage of affordable child care hurts working families and the economy. They differed on how the federal government should respond.
Rep. Ryan Mackenzie (R-PA) introduced the bipartisan Child Care Modernization Act, which would update CCDBG and give states more flexibility to expand supply and provider capacity. Supporters of the state-flexibility approach point to models like Iowa's online platform that matches families with open child care slots, Vermont's provider capacity incentives and New Mexico's decision to eliminate income requirements and co-payments for participating families.
Bonamici promoted two bills that would increase direct federal investment. Her Daycare Not Detentions Act would redirect $70 billion from federal immigration enforcement to child care and early childhood programs. She also backed the Child Care for Working Families Act, which would reduce families' costs, expand access and invest in the child care workforce. Democrats argue that state flexibility alone cannot fill the gap left when federal pandemic funding ended.
Congress recently added $85 million to CCDBG funding, according to a fact sheet from the Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP).
The Bottom Line
No votes on any of the bills discussed at the hearing are currently scheduled. The subcommittee could advance legislation to the full House Education and Workforce Committee, which would then need to pass it before the full House could vote. The Senate would also need to act before anything could become law.
State experiments in Iowa, Tennessee, Kentucky and elsewhere will likely continue to shape the debate as Congress weighs whether to reauthorize and update CCDBG, increase funding or give states broader authority to design their own programs.
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This article was generated by AI pulling from data. Each article is edited by an editor for accuracy and clarity.
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