Why This Matters

In recent years, policymakers in the District of Columbia have implemented changes in child care subsidy policies and practices designed to improve access to quality child care for families throughout the city. Access is defined as care that is affordable, supports child development, meets families’ needs, is accessible with reasonable effort, and is equitable.

What We Found

A team of researchers conducted a study to learn about experiences with these changes and found the following:

• The most innovative changes study participants reported included updates to child care subsidy rates and copayments, expanded child care subsidy eligibility, updates to practices, and clarification of policies. The changes they believe show early promise in improving families’ access to child care include
  • changing child care subsidy reimbursement rates and copayments based on a cost-estimation model instead of market rates as determined by a survey of child development facilities that DC conducted previously; and
  • expanding child care subsidy eligibility from 250 percent to 300 percent of the federal poverty level in fiscal year 2024,
• Families reported a range of experiences accessing subsidized child care with some reporting easy access and others noting challenges with subsidy processes and difficulty accessing quality care.
• DC updated child care subsidy practices and clarified policies in October 2024 to address a number of the challenges families and caseworkers reported to make it easier for families to access child care.
• Decisionmakers and administrators reported they believe changes are making it easier for families to access child care.

How We Did It

To document the perspectives about access to child care in light of these changes, a team of Urban Institute researchers collected and analyzed data from 26 decisionmakers including policymakers, program administrators, child care subsidy caseworkers, community members, and 25 parents through interviews and focus groups. The research team partnered with leaders from the District of Columbia Office of the State Superintendent of Education to analyze and interpret the data.