Child Care Development Fund Recommendations

Young boy holding up a wooden shape at a table, with an adult seated beside him in a colorful room.

View our supplement on Child Care Development Fund (CCDF) Recommendations, designed to help our state leadership leverage CCDF in the short-term for home-based child care providers. We also offer recommendations for addressing family eligibility, child care program participation, and the standards and procedures for licensing, subsidy and quality initiatives, among others.

Home-based child care providers share feedback and insight on their experiences with legislative visits during the 2025 August recess.
Families and child care providers are being squeezed as pandemic-era supports expire and federal funding stalls. Across the country, home-based providers are struggling to stay open amid lower reimbursements and rising costs. Without stronger federal investment in the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG), tens of thousands of children could lose access to care.