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Early Childhood Profile

Health and NutritionEarly Care and EducationParenting and Economic Supports

State Choices to Promote Access

  • Set the income eligibility limit for child care subsidies at or above 200% FPL. [2009]2
    Families of three are eligible up to $27,468-$45,780, or 150%-250% FPL. This reflects no change from 2008.
  • Child care subsidy reimbursement rate meets the recommended 75th percentile of the market rate for two consecutive years [2009]2
    Rate established through local decision
  • Redetermine the eligibility for child care subsidies no more than once per year [2008]3
  • Supplement Early Head Start with state or other federal funds. [2008]4
  • Fund a pre-kindergarten program and/or supplement Head Start. [2008]5
    $46.9 million. This is an increase of $2.2 million from 2007.

State Choices to Promote Quality

  • Require one adult for every 10 4-year-olds, and a maximum class size of 20 in child care centers. [2007]6
    Child care regulations require one adult for every 10 children, and the maximum class size is not regulated.
  • Require one adult for every four 18-month-olds, and a maximum class size of eight in child care centers. [2007]6
    Child care regulations require one adult for every 5 children, and the maximum class size is not regulated.
  • Allocate state or federal funds for a network of infant/toddler specialists that provide assistance to child care providers. [2009]7
  • Have early learning standards or developmental guidelines for infants and toddlers. [2009]8
  • Have an infant/toddler credential. [2009]9
    Non-credit training is a required to obtain the credential
  • Require through regulation that infants and toddlers in child care centers be assigned a consistent primary caregiver. [2008]10
  • Have implemented a statewide Quality Rating Improvement System (QRIS) [2009]11
Health and NutritionParenting and Economic Supports

Data Notes and Sources

Last Updated: March 23, 2010

Send us recent developments to update your state's profile.

  1. Children in multiple care settings are counted more than once. As a result, the total percentage of children in all settings may total to greater than 100%. Data represent the percent of children by age in each care setting, regardless if the provider is licensed/regulated or legally operating without a license. Family home includes children served in group home care.
    United States Department of Health and Human Services. Administration for Children and Families. 2009. Administration on Children, Youth and Families. Child Care Bureau. Child Care Development Fund Administrative Data, Federal Fiscal Year 2006. [Computer file]. ICPSR23640-v2. Ann Arbor, MI: Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research [distributor].
  2. Schulman, Karen; Blank, Helen. 2009. State Child Care Assistance Policies 2009: Most States Hold the Line, But Some Lose Ground in Hard Times. National Women's Law Center. http://www.nwlc.org (accessed October 23, 2009).
  3. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families. 2008. Report of State and Territory Plans, FY 2008—2009. http://nccic.acf.hhs.gov (Accessed February 24, 2009)
  4. Schumacher, Rachel; DiLauro, Elizabeth. 2008. Building on the Promise: State Initiatives to Expand Access to Early Head Start for Young Children and their Families. Washington, DC: Center for Law and Social Policy and Zero to Three Policy Center.
  5. Barnett, W. Steven; Epstein, Dale J.; Friedman, Allison H.; Boyd, Judi Stevenson; Hustedt, Jason T. 2008. The State of Preschool 2008. New Brunswick, NJ: National Institute for Early Education Research. http://nieer.org
  6. National Child Care Information Center. 2008. Child-Staff Ratios and Maximum Group Size Requirements in 2007. http://nccic.acf.hhs.gov (accessed February 25, 2009).
  7. ZERO TO THREE, personal e-mail (received March 5, 2009) based on information gathered as of February 9, 2009.
  8. Heying, Karen. Zero to Three. October 30, 2009. Personal Communication.
  9. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Child Care Bureau. 2009. Child Care and Development Fund. Report of State and Territory Plans FY 2008-2009. http://nccic.acf.hhs.gov (accessed February 28, 2010)
  10. National Association for Regulatory Administration and the National Child Care Information and Technical Assistance Center. 2009. The 2007 Child Care Licensing Study: Final Report. http://www.naralicensing.org (accessed April 3, 2009)
  11. Quality Rating Improvement Systems are a method to asses, improve, and communicate information about early childcare providers.
    U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, National Child Care Information and Technical Assistance Center. 2009. QRIS Definition and Statewide Systems. http://nccic.acf.hhs.gov (accessed November 16, 2009)