Child Care and Early Childhood Education Highlights 2001

Child Care Project

Enacted 2001 State Laws

Child Care and Early Childhood Education Highlights

Key child care and early education trends in state legislation include an array of financing mechanisms, basic regulatory provisions, preschool expansions and quality improvements in the form of professional development and training for providers.

Financing

State legislatures continued to expand financing for early childhood services in several ways in the past year. At least four states (Iowa, Kentucky, New York and Texas) enacted laws providing grants to programs. Some states (California, Iowa, Kentucky and Texas) expanded funding through local means. Several states (Illinois, Montana, Nebraska and Oregon) created tax credits for either parents or employers to support the care and development of young children. Legislatures in two states (California and Iowa) directed loan funds to improve child care services. Two state legislatures (Arkansas and California) established nonprofit organizations to administer child care funds or improvements.

Low-Income issues

As in previous years, state legislators enacted laws aimed at improving access, affordability and quality child care for children from low-income families. Several state laws promoted child care access to TANF-eligible or income-eligible families through strategic planning (Virginia), a state assurance (Maine) and a waiting list protection (Connecticut). Legislatures in two states addressed the implementation of tax proceeds for low-income child care, including taxes on tobacco (California) and on alcohol (Arkansas). Two states in 2001 authorized higher child care reimbursement for accredited child care (Maine, New Mexico). Several new state laws provided for local implementation of child care subsidies. Other key issues addressed by state laws enacted this year include expanded legislative oversight of CCDBG plans (Minnesota), support for families during nontraditional hours (Texas), coordination with preschool systems (Louisiana, Texas), and improved quality for low-income child care (Maine, New Mexico).

Preschool

Several states (Louisiana, Nebraska, New Jersey and Virginia) enacted laws that either established a funded preschool program or expanded support for preschool. Other laws focused on developing appropriate preschool teacher qualifications and compensation (New Jersey, Oklahoma), requiring state technical assistance for prekindergarten programs, establishing performance measurements, allowing for full-day services, specifying eligibility for preschool, adding funding options for facilities and increasing health services. A new Texas law requires exploration of early childhood system coordination approaches.

Infant/Toddler Care and Development

In 2001, legislators continued to emphasize on care and development services for infants and toddlers (children under age 3). Newly enacted laws focused on expanding funding and coordination (Minnesota, Texas), funding services for very young children with disabilities (Hawaii, Indiana), and health and safety standards for this population (Texas, Washington). Enacted legislation identified

Early Head Start, TANF and increased child care reimbursement rates as key funding sources for infant/toddler child care and family support services. Some enacted laws (Texas, Washington) required states to more actively ensure the health and safety of children under age 3. Legislatures in a few states also addressed services for parents staying at home with their infants, such as family leave (Minnesota, Oregon).

Regulations

Ensuring that children in child care are safe was again the major theme for enacted laws on child care regulations this year. Several states (Arkansas, Louisiana, Vermont and Washington) enacted laws to clarify and support safety of children's products. Other safety measures included protections against pesticides (New York), radon and dangerous playgrounds (California). Several states (Colorado, Maryland, Nebraska and Oregon) established laws that strengthened regulatory enforcement in various ways. In addition, 13 states tightened background checks, some for volunteers or relatives of in-home care providers, while also increasing the number of convictions to disqualify a provider and providing parents with information about background checks. Two states (New York, Ohio) established laws to examine practices for ensuring safety in background check systems. Other new state regulatory laws addressed caregiver qualification requirements (New Jersey, South Carolina and Texas) and exemptions for religious-based (Colorado, Kansas) and irregular care (Montana).

Provider Support and Training

Laws providing state support to training child care providers were enacted in at least four states (Connecticut, New Jersey, New York and Texas) in 2001. In addition, laws in several states (Arkansas, Louisiana and Texas) supported broader professional development activities for child care providers. Some states (Illinois, New York) enacted laws requiring more child care training requirements. Because of high child care worker turnover rates, several state laws (California, Connecticut, New York and Texas) focused on retaining provider, and some specified approaches to encourage retention through salary protections (Connecticut, Louisiana, Oklahoma and Texas). Other key related issues enacted in state legislation this past year include accreditation (Maine, New Mexico) and resource and referral services (Arizona, Texas).

School-Age Programs

Several state legislatures (Arkansas, Maryland, Minnesota, Oklahoma and South Dakota) added funding for school-age programs, including funds aimed at increasing services, quality and facilities. Other new laws included both applying certain regulatory standards (California, Florida and New York) to after-school programs and exempting certain out-of-school time programs from regulations (Indiana, Kansas).

Contact information:

Julie Poppe, Policy Associate or Beth Clemens, Research Analyst at (303) 364-7700

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