Lamont and lawmakers look for ways to boost childcare

Connecticut saw a 6% jump in the number of childcare seats available to families over the last year, a new report from the United Way of Connecticut found.

The report also found 20% of authorized childcare seats still aren’t being fully utilized, something United Way said signals the need for more action.

“So we know there’s more to be done there to make childcare not only available but also affordable for all Connecticut parents who need it,” United Way of Connecticut President and CEO Lisa Tepper Bates said.

Bates made the comments after a roundtable discussion hosted by Gov. Ned Lamont (D-Connecticut) and the Office of Early Childhood.

Lamont is looking to build support for a plan to shift $300 million each of the next two years into a fund specifically created for early childhood education.

“It's an endowment, so that in good times and bad times, you’ve got the money there, you’re not overspending,” he said.

Lamont’s goal is to make childcare free for all households earning less than $100,000 a year.

The money would go into an endowment, with 10% of the fund going toward childcare.

Kierra Edwards, of Bridgeport, said she never would have had childcare for her two kids, now ages five and nine, without help from the state’s Care for Kids subsidy program.

“It's really, really hard to find childcare,” she said after the discussion at the Legislative Office Building.

Edwards, now pregnant with her third child, said she’s been able to work and study to become a social worker thanks to the support.

She said families planning to have kids are facing even more difficulties.

“For those families that don’t have children – good luck,” she said.

Republicans have also said they support more funding for childcare, just not according to the governor’s plan.

Lamont’s proposal would modify the volatility cap– a limit on how much the state can spend from tax on investment income and other revenue streams prone to fluctuation. 

The state has exceeded the revenue cap annually since it was put into place in 2017, often by $1 billion or more.

Lamont’s plan would tap into the surplus by moving the money into an account that is outside the budget and not subject to the spending cap.

He defends the plan as a way to safeguard money in tough times while avoiding massive surges in spending when the economy is good.

Republicans, though, call it a gimmick that isn’t needed if Democrats truly want to make it a budget priority.

“It doesn’t prioritize early childhood education, it just creates a gimmick to support early childhood education,” Rep. Vincent Candelora (R-Minority Leader) said. “We would rather see it prioritized.”

But Tepper Bates said Lamont’s plan for free childcare for some families could help increase access for all families.

She also credited the governor for the 6% jump last year, including by increasing class sizes for some preschool age ranges so that centers could take in more schools.

Lamont’s administration also touted another round of grant funding, $10 million, that recently received more applications.

Lawmakers continue with their own proposals, including several from Democrats that would also pump additional money into early childhood education.

One bill, a priority for House Democrats, cleared the Education Committee on Monday.

It would transfer $100 million from the budget surplus each of the next two years into a special fund created last year.

It’s not the endowment Lamont said he’s looking for, but supporters say it would get money into communities faster.

“"There is a reason this bill is a top priority this session: its benefits will reverberate throughout our economy," said Rep. Jennifer Leeper (D-Fairfield) and a co-chair of the education committee said.

That bill would also earmark another $100 million for grants for childcare centers.