The Child Care Collaborative Task Force ( task force ) comprises a broad coalition of child care providers , advocates , legislators , community members and representatives of the business community . The task force was created by the Washington State Legislature in 2018 (
Chapter 91 , Laws of 2018 ) to develop policy recommendations to incentivize employer-supported child care and improve child care access and affordability for employees . Legislation passed in 2019 (
Chapter 368 , Laws of 2019 ) extended the task force and expanded its scope of work . This report was produced to satisfy the portion of the requirements of
Chapter 368 , Laws of 2019 and
Chapter 334 , Laws of 2021 ( the biennial operating budget ). The full citation is available in Appendix A .
This report draws significantly on the Prenatal to Five Fiscal Strategies ' ( P5FS ) October 2022 report , " Understanding the true cost of child care in Washington state : A cost estimation model to inform policy change " ( Appendix E ) and builds on four years of previous task force research and recommendations , including the June 2021 report , "
Washington State Child Care Access Strategy and Action Plan ." The 2021 report called for broad change to support child care as an essential infrastructure critical to rebuilding Washington ' s economy . Task force reports to the Legislature between 2018 and 2022 include :
•
Report # 1 , Nov . 1 , 2019 : Policy recommendations to incentivize employer-supported child care and improve access and affordability for employees .
•
Report # 2 , July 1 , 2020 : Child care industry assessment and facility needs assessment , including results from the State Employee Child Care Access Survey .
•
Report # 4 , June 30 , 2021 : Child care access strategy : A strategy , timeline and implementation plan to reach accessible , affordable child care by 2025 .
• Report # 5 ( this report ), December 2022 : Report findings and recommendations on the true cost of quality child care in Washington .
An additional report ,
" The Mounting Costs of Child Care ," was published in 2019 by several task force partner organizations , including the Washington State Department of Commerce , U . S . Chamber of Commerce Foundation , Association of Washington Business , Child Care Aware of Washington , and the Children ' s Alliance . This report was not submitted to or directed by the Legislature . It served to inform this report and the work of the task force .
Over the past four years , the Department of Commerce has collaborated with the Department of Children , Youth , and Families ( DCYF ) to convene the task force and establish research and policy recommendations . This work informed recent policy changes and investments in early learning , including Washington ' s Fair Start for Kids Act ( FSKA ), passed in 2021 . The FSKA doubled Washington ' s investments in child care and early learning , primarily by expanding eligibility and increasing rates for the Working Connections Child Care ( WCCC ) program and the Early Childhood Education and Assistance Program ( ECEAP ).
Implementation of the FSKA coincided with the COVID-19 pandemic and has been an essential lifeline for many families and providers . However , the pandemic amplified major issues that already existed in the child care industry and remain largely unaddressed in the FSKA . These include inadequate compensation and support for the child care workforce , which is disproportionately comprised of low-income women of color ,
2022 COST OF QUALITY CHILD CARE LEGISLATIVE REPORT 10