Administration Reverses a Decade of Indifference
Feb 01, 2010
Today, President Obama presented his FY 2011 budget proposal to Congress. The document offers a blueprint of the president's spending priorities for the coming year. This budget reflects the administration's understanding of the importance of quality child care and early education experiences for young children and intention to expand and improve the quality of the early childhood system in a coordinated way. Specifically, the budget calls for:
- $1.6 billion increase for the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG), including $373 million for quality activities of which $137 million is targeted for activities that improve the quality of infant/toddler care;
- $989 million increase for Head Start, including Early Head Start;
- $3 billion increase for programs authorized under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA); and
- nearly $9 billion over ten years for the proposed Early Learning Challenge Fund.
In addition, the budget calls for expanding the Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit; funding to reauthorize the Child Nutrition programs, including the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP); and funding for Promise Neighborhoods and 21st Century Community Learning Centers. READ MORE