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Utah

Utah, like all states, has a unique early childhood policy landscape that is shaped by economics, demographics, political history, coalitions, and other factors that create a state-specific environment for policy advocacy.

State early childhood policy progress is dependent both on the state’s environment and the numerous efforts—by the organizations listed on this page, other organizations, parents, policymakers, practitioners, and more—who work both independently and collaboratively to achieve wins for young children.

2025 State Early Childhood Policy Environment and Progress

Early Childhood Landscape:

Research shows that family economic security is foundational to children’s overall wellbeing. Research also shows that widespread disparities in opportunity (especially by race) drive wide disparities in outcomes. States with policies that offer strong support to young children and their families are more likely to see 1) declining numbers of children in low-income households and 2) low racial disparity among those children. 

Young Children in Low-Income Households: Declining

Approximately 31 percent (130,000) of the state’s children 0-8 live in households below 200% FPL (2022). This number represents a decrease from 35 percenet (159,000) in 2017.1

Racial Disparity Among Young Children Living in Low-Income Households: High

Black, Hispanic/Latino, and Native children aged 0-8 are significantly more likely to be living in households below 200 percent FPL than are Asian and non-Hispanic White children.2

(NOTE: Selecting for age 0-8, state, and race can yield small cell sizes that can make percentages less accurate. Bars marked with S indicate data with extremely small cell sizes, which is not displayed. Bars marked with C should be interpreted with caution. Though the cell sizes are larger, they still fall below a threshold of reliability.)

Advocacy Landscape:

State Funding Appropriations: Declining 

In 2025, Utah’s governor signed a series of bills making up the state budget for fiscal 2026, which provides $30.8 billion in total funds, an increase of $924.6 million, or 3.1 percent, over the revised fiscal 2025 budget. The budget provides $11.8 billion in general fund, income tax fund, and uniform school fund (GF/ITF/USF) spending, a decrease of $818.5 million, or 6.5 percent, compared to the revised fiscal 2025 budget. This decrease is largely due to the elimination of one-time fiscal 2025 appropriations. Net general fund and income tax fund revenues are estimated at $11.5 billion in fiscal 2026 following legislative changes, a decrease of 0.5 percent from the revised fiscal 2025 forecast. Looking at reserves, total projected fiscal 2025 balances of $1.2 billion represent about 9.4 percent of combined fiscal 2025 general, income tax, and uniform school fund appropriations. Ongoing revenue exceeds ongoing commitments by $7.5 million in the budget.3

Key Revenue Sources (excluding federal transfers):4

      • Charges ($3,033 per capita)
      • Individual Income Taxes ($2,040 per capita)

Utah uses all major state and local taxes. Charges are public payments connected with a specific government service, such as tuition paid to a state university, payments to a public hospital, or highway tolls.

State Budget Rules:4

Utah uses an annual budget. The legislature must pass a balanced budget, but it can carry a deficit over into the following year. Utah also limits spending growth with a budget rule based on the state’s growth in population, personal income, and inflation. The rule is binding and requires a legislative supermajority or vote of the people to override it. Utah also limits total authorized debt and debt service incurred by the state.

Permanent State Funding Stream Dedicated to Early Childhood: No

Utah has no permanent state funding stream—such as lottery revenue, nicotine tax, or trust fund distributions—dedicated by statute to early childhood supports.9 (Examples of states with such funding in place can be found in the Alliance’s Revenue and Early Childhood Finance resource center.) 

Political Alignment: Aligned Republican

During the 2025 session, the state’s Senate and House were both Republican controlled. The state’s Governor was also a Republican.6

Types of Ballot Measures Available:  Four

    • Legislature-initiated state statute: Appears on a state’s ballot as a ballot measure because the state legislature in that state voted to put it before the voters.
    • Voter-initiated state statute: Earns a spot on the ballot when sponsors collect signatures according to the laws governing the initiative process in Utah.
    • Legislature-initiated constitutional amendment: A constitutional amendment that appears on a state’s ballot as a ballot measure because the state legislature in that state voted to put it before the voters.
    • Veto referendum – When citizens of Utah disagree with a statute or legislative bill enacted by the state legislature, they can collect signatures to force the issue to a vote. If enough signatures are collected, the bill is placed on the statewide ballot.7

Key State Policy Advocacy Organizations Include:

Early Childhood Policy Advocacy Multi-State Initiatives Include:6

2025 Policy Progress:

Highlights from the state’s early childhood policy advocacy community include:9

Advocates successfully advocated for an expansion of the State Child Tax Credit to include children under the age of six. Utah’s previous CTC was only for children aged 1 to 4, and the expansion should raise the number of eligible children by 9,600. Advocates originally advanced this as part of a smaller bill, but it was ultimately included in HB 106, a larger tax bill.

Utah’s place-based preschool grant program, called the School Readiness Grant Program, received an additional $2-million a year for the next three years. This is the first new money the program has received since 2020. Advocates, however, were disappointed that the funding will come from TANF funds (not state funds) and that the small size of the appropriation will likely not mean added capacity (only help preventing cut seats in the face on inflation).

Advocates successfully fought for food security amendments to HB 100 that make school lunch free for students living 185 percent below the federal poverty level. Advocates were disappointed the change was funded with one-time funds and are renewing their advocacy for ongoing funding.

Advocates in Utah had several defensive wins in 2025, including:

The defeat of HB178 Noncitizen Health Insurance Policies Amendments that would have eliminated the State Children’s Health Insurance Program that provides health insurance to immigrant children.  

The defeat of SB257 Medicaid Accounts Amendments, which would circumvent the current shortfall process with a new broad definition of “shortfall” and new triggered cuts. the oilicy would have had a significant negative impact on Medicaid recipients.

Ongoing Grantee Areas of Advocacy:

The Alliance’s key allies in Utah are Voices for Utah Children and Promise Partnership Utah. Voices is a non-profit, non-partisan policy analysis and advocacy organization, which has been working for decades to advance the wellbeing of all children in Utah. Voices conducts data and policy analysis to assess the best public policy solutions to support positive outcomes for kids and their families. Voices also engages in vigorous advocacy for the adoption of data-driven policies that help children across the state. Promise Partnership Utah provides backbone support through the Promise Partnership, a cross-sector partnership working to ensure every child in Utah has the opportunity to succeed in school and life. The Partnership focuses on creating lasting social change by addressing systemic challenges, scaling practices that work, and leveraging its influence to create alignment and political will.

They are working to advance early childhood policies in several areas that align with the Alliance’s birth-through-eight policy framework:

Early Care and Education

Child Care

Child Care Workforce

K-3 Education

Pre-School and Pre-K

Child and
Maternal Health

Maternal Health

Infant & Child Health

Family
Supports

Family Economic Security

Early Childhood Infrastructure

Click here for more information on advocates’ policy agenda.

RECENT ADVOCACY SNAPSHOT:
Alliance for Early Success Utah Early Childhood Policy

Utah Coalition Celebrates Passage of Full-Day Kindergarten Option

The Utah Full-Day Kindergarten Now! Coalition of more than 50 organizations is joining with Utah families to celebrate the passage of a full-day kindergarten option across the state. A bill passed by the legislature and signed by the governor provides greater access to optional full-day kindergarten in Utah by funding the program the same way grades 1 through 12 are funded.

Read More »

NOTES:

1 Kids Count Data Center, Annie E. Casey Foundation, Children Ages 0 to 8 Below 200 Percent Poverty, January, 2024. 

2 National Center for Children in Poverty, Children Ages 0 through 8 Below 200 Percent Poverty, October 2024, NCCP analysis of ACS 5-Year Estimates – Public Use Microdata Sample 2018-2022.

3 National Association of State Budget Officers, Proposed and Enacted Budgets, FY 2026.

4 Urban Institute, State Fiscal Briefs, April 2025.

5 Alliance for Early Success, State Examples of Dedicated Funding Streams, 2025

6 National Conference of State Legislatures, 2025 State & Legislative Partisan Composition, January 31, 2025.

7 Ballotpedia, Ballot Measures by State, Kids Count Data Center, 2025.

8 Alliance for Early Success, Multi-State Initiatives for Early Childhood Policy Advocacy, July, 2024.

9 Alliance for Early Success, State-Wide Advocacy Highlights Survey, April-October, 2025. 

More State Policy Data:

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More State Child Data:

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