Child care cuts are expected as democrats in Washington’s House and Senate release state budget proposals.
The Senate Democratic Caucus held a press conference at the State Capitol to unveil a proposed 2025-27 state operating budget on Monday.
For child care advocates like Joel Ryan, the Executive Director of the Washington State Association of Head Start and Early Childhood Education and Assistance Program (ECEAP) this means reduced access for families.
“Sadly, both budgets eliminate funding for 178 extremely high-need infants and toddlers currently being served in Early ECEAP,” Ryan said in a statement from the ECEAP Association.
The statement also referenced the elimination thousands of ECEAP slots.
If the proposed budget is approved, families who would have gained eligibility to Working Connections, which subsidizes child care and daycare costs, will have to wait longer to qualify.
“Families who use Working Connections Child Care, some of them will need to pay more in copays as a result of this,” said Washington Senator June Robinson, Chair of the Senate Ways and Means Committee.
This could become too expensive for some families who relied on the state subsidy program copays and are already dealing with rising household costs.
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“It’s less support for families who need childcare and early learning for their young ones,” Senator Robinson said.
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