Child Care Funding Cuts Would Leave Nearly 50,000 Children Without Access

Oct 15, 2026

Upload by James

Level funding for the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) in FY26 would reduce access for about 24,000 fewer children, and the compounded effect of two years of stagnant federal funding would leave nearly 50,000 children without CCDBG child care assistance. CCDBG supports low-income families, yet only 15% of eligible children were served in 2021. The document urges Congress to increase CCDBG investments aligned with inflation and protect related services and the child care workforce.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryHealthcare

FormatPDF

Pages4

Reading Time10 min

AccessFree to download

CCDBG impact of FY26 level funding

Estimated children losing access and state-by-state figures

Background on CCDBG eligibility and need

Policy request to Congress

Nearly 50,000 children lose access since last increase Rachel Wilensky and Stephanie Schmit | September 2025 As Congress negotiates the fiscal year (FY) 2026 appropriations package, another year of level funding for the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG), which has been proposed in the House Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies bill marked up this week, would result in more children losing access to child care. CLASP estimates that the impact of level funding will mean approximately 24,000 fewer children will have access to child care through CCDBG in FY26 . The compounded impact of two years of stagnant funding would mean nearly 50,000 fewer children have access to child care assistance. CCDBG is a critical support for families with low incomes who, without access to assistance, would likely be unable to afford their current child care arrangements. However, due to limited federal funding, child care assistance funded through CCDBG and other federal sources was only able to serve 15 percent of eligible children in 2021, the most recent year that data is available. 1 The annual appropriations process is an important opportunity to increase federal investments in programs that respond to greater need and ensure funding keeps up with rising inflation. Following the passage of the harmful budget reconciliation package, millions of children and families are set to lose access to health care, food assistance, and other vital services to pay for harsh immigration policies and tax cuts for billionaires and corporations. As families prepare to make difficult decisions like taking a third job or switching to the night shift to be able to put food on the table or get treatment when they are sick, significant and sustained increases in annual discretionary funding remain a critical support. The reconciliation package included provisions that benefit high earners through tax credits and set-asides that can only be accessed by families and businesses who can already afford to set aside money for care. It does nothing to mitigate the child care crisis for families who are struggling to make ends meet, and it threatens the already fragile child care workforce by limiting benefits, like Medicaid and SNAP, that many child care providers rely on due to low wages. As Congress works toward finalizing the FY26 appropriations process, it is essential that they protect programs families rely on and fight for investments that align with need, like long-term and sustainable increases to child care to preserve and improve access to assistance. The following table provides each state’s estimated distribution of grant year 2 (GY) 2026 annual discretionary funds 3 if the program is level-funded, and the estimated number of children that will lose access to CCDBG-funded child care from the failure to keep child care assistance at pace with inflation. The table also shows the impact that stagnant funding in FY25 had on the program and the total impact of two back-to-back years without increases. We urge Congress to stop this decline in child care assistance and increase investments in CCDBG in the FY26 appropriations process. For questions, please contact Stephanie Schmit at [sschmit@clasp.org](sschmit@clasp.org). | State
Estimates of GY2026 Discretionary
Funds4
Number of children who lose access to CCDBG-funded child care with FY26 level
funding 5
Number of children who lose access to CCDBG-funded child care with FY25 level funding
Total number of children who lose access
to care
FY25 & FY26 | | | | | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Alabama | $156,190,404 | 647 | 655 | 1,302 | | Alaska | $14,341,607 | 26 | 26 | 52 | | Arizona | $201,548,011 | 578 | 585 | 1,163 | | Arkansas | $109,006,199 | 310 | 313 | 623 | | California | $811,192,986 | 3, 105 | 3,140 | 6,245 | | Colorado | $92,010,245 | 227 | 229 | 456 | | Connecticut | $60,484,850 | 128 | 130 | 258 | | Delaware |

FAQs

What would level funding for CCDBG in FY26 cause?

It would result in about 24,000 fewer children having access to child care through CCDBG, with the longer-term combined impact pushing the total near nearly 50,000 children over two years of stagnant funding.

Why is CCDBG described as critical for families?

CCDBG provides essential support to low-income families who otherwise would likely be unable to afford their current child care arrangements.

What does the document ask Congress to do in the FY26 appropriations process?

It urges Congress to stop the decline in child care assistance and increase CCDBG investments so funding keeps pace with inflation and preserves/improves access.

Oct 15, 2026

Upload by James