Can public option save MN families from expensive child care?

It is a burden many Minnesota parents can relate to, struggling to afford child care or finding an open slot and now, a decades-old idea to create equal access around the country is getting another look.

The U.S. child care system is often described as "broken," with states and local governments pursuing a patchwork of solutions, along with limited federal subsidies for low-income households. The nonprofit think tank the Roosevelt Institute led a new report calling for a "public option" approach, with stronger federal investments to close gaps.

Lena Bilik, program manager for the institute, said despite the urgency, attempts to solve this crisis for working parents have been uneven at best.

"We keep tinkering around the edges," Bilik observed. "But what we really need is for child care to be a public good."

The authors suggested, like public schools, there should be a universal network of care sites to guarantee free slots without means testing. Instead of subsidies and tax credits, they called for a big boost in federal aid for providers, so they can expand and hire staff and keep costs down. The policy push traces back to the 1970s but has faced political resistance along the way. On average, child care costs account for nearly 19% of a Minnesota family's income.

While this idea still has opponents, elected leaders from all parties have filed bipartisan bills in response to the child care shortage. The Economic Security Project is a partner in the report.

Taylor Jo Isenberg, executive director of the nonprofit Economic Security Project, a partner in the report, is among those who see it as an infrastructure investment to help the economy by keeping parents in the workforce.

"I think understanding these as tools – not just to meet the needs of families right now but as a kind of foundation of a healthy, dynamic economy and country – is a really important part of the story," Isenberg contended.

The guiding principles in the report followed input from parents, grassroots organizers and child care providers, including the Minnesota network known as Kids Count on Us. Some of the national pushback against a universal system suggests it would erode the quality of care. Bilik countered one of their recommendations strongly advises against provisions like deregulation.

"A trend around the country is sort of changing adult-to-child ratio rules to deal with the shortage of staff," Bilik noted. "That might sound OK but then you picture a room, we're talking literal babies or infants that need care, and you need a lot of adults for that."