Recent State Policy Advances
Expanded investment. Restructured agencies. New caucuses, committees, and coalitions. Read about all the ways our allies on the front lines are making their state a better place for each and every child to reach their full potential.
State By State:
Nebraska Advocates Turn Child Care Tax Credits into a High-Demand Tool for Families and Providers
Nebraska advocates demonstrated how the Alliance for Early Success’s flexible funding and expert support can help state advocates turn a promising idea into measurable progress for young children and the adults who care for them. Advocates recognized that tax credits could be a powerful tool for strengthening the state’s child care system—but only if families, providers, and employers actually used them. First Five Nebraska designed a package of credits paired with a communications and outreach strategy. Their approach also offers a simple playbook for other states.
Wisconsin and Louisiana Advocates Mobilize Dads at State Capitols to Support Child Care Funding and Family Policies
Geaux Far Louisiana and Kids Forward organized dads across Louisiana and Wisconsin to rally at their state capitols for kids and families. Father-led advocacy is laying the foundation for future change. Kids Forward is now working with members of the Wisconsin State Assembly to launch a bipartisan Wisconsin Dads Caucus. In Louisiana, a state senate resolution was introduced and passed to establish a state fatherhood task force.
In a Year of Economic Uncertainty, Differing State Approaches to Spending on Young Children
Several states including Maryland, Arkansas, and Indiana have opted to reduce funding for early learning programs, while others, such as New York, Texas, and Illinois, managed to strengthen their programs despite fiscal headwinds.
In Vermont, A Decade-Old Campaign Winds Down and Reflects on Progress
In 2015, Let’s Grow Kids, a statewide advocacy organization, was launched in Vermont with a clear goal: secure affordable access to high-quality child care for the state’s families by 2025. Let’s Grow Kids has now officially ended its operations, and that is by design. The organization was designed from the start to be a time-limited, ten-year endeavor to reach the unprecedented outcome it achieved in Act 76, which passed in 2023.
A Growing Number of States Are Turning to Dedicated Funding for Young Children
Alliance responsive support provider Children’s Funding Project is helping advocates across the country win dedicated streams of public financing to support young children. Establishing dedicated funding for ECE can be an effective way to ensure these programs don’t get left out during the budget process.
Arkansas Advocates Welcome New Medicaid Funding as a First Step On the Long Road to Ending Preventable Maternal Death in the State
The passage of the Healthy Moms, Healthy Babies Act enacts provisions that advocates have long fought for and confronts some of the barriers fueling poor maternal health outcomes, but they insist Arkansas has a long way to go to ensure a healthy birth for every mother and baby.
The Future of the CCDF Rule Is Not Clear, but Alaska, Maine, and Others Are Continuing Its Improvements
Though the Trump administration has recently been sending signals that they intend to do away with the rule entirely, state advocates report the CCDF Rule has sparked many of the recent positive changes in child care policy across the country.
Alliance Network Advocates Are Collaborating and Sharing Strategies for Fostering Parent Leadership in Advocacy and Policy
Peer collaboration and idea exchange among advocates is a big part of the Alliance network’s success, and that powerful effect is especially clear when it comes to Allies’ work to collaborate on fostering parent leadership in early childhood policy advocacy.
A Series of Laws Strengthens New Jersey’s Early Education System
While the successful bills mark a push toward universal pre-k and full-day kindergarten, advocates insist more work lies ahead to ensure eligible pre-k students get the chance to participate in the state’s Abbott Preschool program.
South Dakota Advocates Spotlight Child Care Workforce Unsustainability and Introduce First Workforce Subsidy Bill
A task force, a Children’s Day at the Capitol, and a new workforce child care subsidy bill are a few of the pieces of South Dakota advocates’ push to better support the state’s child care providers and workers.
Oregon Child Care Advocacy Coalition Has a New Way to Set Its Policy Agenda, and It Begins with Parents and Providers
The Child Care for Oregon coalition has implemented a new process that sets its policy agenda by first asking parents and practitioners to name the barriers they face and describe the future they envision for child care in Oregon.
A New Endowment Aims to Transform Connecticut’s Early Education System
Connecticut’s Early Childhood Education Endowment, seeded with an initial $300 million investment, marks the culmination of years of work by early education advocates fighting for sustainable, long-term funding.