Child Care in State Economies - 2024 Update - A Three-Part Report Series - Part 1: Recent Trends in Paid Child Care Usage

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Callum

Child Care in State Economies: 2024 Update - Part 1 analyzes recent trends in the paid child care market in the United States, following major disruptions during the COVID-19 public health pandemic. It reviews how families adjusted paid care use and how that affected labor-force participation opportunities, emphasizing demand-side changes. The report uses data through at least 2022, focusing on the economic recovery period and highlighting that child care usage rebounded more slowly than overall economic activity.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages42

Reading Time1 h 46 min

AccessFree to download

Overview: A Three-Part Report Series

Objectives and analytical focus

Demand-side view of paid child care usage

Data sources and coverage (CPS-ASEC/ASEC)

Child Care in State Economies 2024 Update A THREE-PART REPORT SERIES Part 1: Recent Trends in Paid Child Care Usage JANUARY 2024 This report was produced by RegionTrack, Inc., an economic research firm, and commissioned by Committee for Economic Development, the public policy center of The Conference Board (CED) with funding from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. It provides a broad overview of the child care industry from the perspective of allowing parents to participate in the labor force (or to further education and training), and as an industry that employs workers and is an integral part of state economies. Child Care in State Economies: 2024 Update Child Care in State Economies 2024 Overview: A Three-Part Report Series Child Care in State Economies (2024) is a three-part series examining the current status of the paid child care industry in the U.S. The reports provide policymakers and other stakeholders with a detailed update on the status of the paid child care industry following unprecedented disruption during the recent COVID-19 public health pandemic. Both parents and child care providers made significant adjustments in the way paid child care is used and delivered since the onset of the pandemic in early 2020. The objectives ofthe reports are to analyze changes in the use of paid care, assess the residual effects on the child care industry, and evaluate changes in the economic role played by paid child care in the national and state economies. Most of the data in the report extends through at least 2022, which captures a significant portion of the economic recovery to date. The three reports focus on paid child care because it is the measure of care believed to be most closely identified with the core economic role of child care as a means for parents to work. The use of paid care is also highly correlated with economic activity at the national and state levels. The report series will continue to highlight how the paid child care market differs among the states. During the pandemic, state-level labor markets experienced widely varying outcomes, which in turn generated significant differences in the outcome for paid child care markets across the states. This analysis provides valuable insight to state policymakers who face unique characteristics for both the labor force and paid child care markets in their respective states. Detailed data appendices are provided along with the report allowing the study of changes in child care activity at the state level. The first report focuses on the demand side of the market for paid child care services. This view of child care examines the usage of paid child care by families to enable a parent to work. The child care market experienceda steep drop in the use of paid care amid massive layoffs in the early stages ofthe pandemic. The sector has since experienced steady recovery, but the rebound in paid care usage remains well below pre-COVID levels and lagsthe overall economic recovery. There are also widely differing outcomes in the share of paid child care usage across the states. The second report concentrates primarily on the supply of child care from the perspective of paid child care providers. This analysis is performed within the context of identifying structural changes to child care delivery since the onset of the recent pandemic. This includes the number of child care providers, changes in the childcare workforce and wages, and spillover effects from the child care industry to the broader economy. The Child Care in State Economies: 2024 Update 3 pandemic prompted significant changes in the structure of the industry, both nationally and across the states. The focus of the third report is the role of paid child care usage in regional economic growth and associated changes in labor force participation, income, and poverty. Child care remains a key factor in economic growth via its role as a means for parents with children to participate in

FAQs

This report series focuses on what aspect of child care?

It focuses on paid child care because it is viewed as the measure most closely tied to child care’s core economic role: enabling parents to work and participating in national and state economic activity.

What changed in paid child care usage after the pandemic began?

Usage dropped steeply early in the pandemic amid massive layoffs, followed by a steady recovery. However, the rebound remained well below pre-COVID levels and lagged overall economic recovery.

Why does the report rely heavily on specific data sources?

Comprehensive surveys are sparse and often released with time lags. The CPS-ASEC is highlighted as the most comprehensive source, providing consistent annual information on paid child care use and expenditures across multiple years.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Callum