Albany, NY, December 8, 2015 -
The 2015
Parents and the High Cost of Child Care
report released today by Child Care Aware® of America (CCAoA) confirms that New York is one of the most expensive states for child care. New York is ranked number one as the least affordable state for center-based four-year old care, and number three as least affordable for center-based infant care. Further, the cost of full-time, center-based care for two children is the highest single household expense in most parts of the country, including New York, where care is nearly double (96 percent greater) the cost of rent. While families continue to struggle with child care costs and finding affordable, quality care solutions, U.S. businesses also pay the price for employee absenteeism due to child care breakdowns, losing approximately $4.4 billion in 2014.
The report shows a continued trend of child care costs that put a strain on families in the United States, rivaling what the average family pays for one year of college tuition at a four year institution. In New York the cost of a year of care in a center for an infant is nearly double (94 percent greater) the cost of a year of tuition at a public college, the widest gap of any state. And while families pay only about 23 percent of the cost of a public college education, with the remainder subsidized by state and federal funds, about 60 percent of funding for child care in the United States comes directly from parents.
The latest report finds that the average center-based child care in New York can cost as much as $14,144 annually for an infant or $11,700 annually for a four-year-old. The cost of child care is especially difficult for families living at or below the federal poverty level. For these families, full-time, center-based care for an infant is 70 percent of family income and 129 percent when two children are in care. For single parents the costs can be overwhelming - in New York annual costs of center-based infant care is over 54 percent of the state median income for single parents.
High-quality child care programs are one of the most powerful predictors of children's development and learning, and are dependent on having educated and skilled providers. However, in every state, child care workers would need to spend nearly 50 percent of their income in order to afford child care for their own children. New York is among the 6 states, plus Washington DC, where over 100 percent of the median child care worker's income is required to put two children in center-based care.
"Investing in young children at this age is so critically important because of the research that demonstrates that 85 percent of brain development happens by age 5," said David Voegele, Executive Director at the Early Care & Learning Council. "When young children do not receive quality care that adequately addresses brain development, they are less likely to be ready for school, ready for life, and ready to be productive members of the community."
Child Care
Aware® of America, the nation's leading voice for child care, advocates for a quality, safe child care system that supports families' education and overall economic advancement. With the release of the 2015 Parents and the High Cost of Child Care report, CCAoA recommends three areas to work on as a country to improve the child care system:
- empower providers with a living wage and affordable professional development opportunities;
- help families make good child care decisions with reliable and accessible information; and
- create a seamless, affordable child care system that works for families, which will require an investment from businesses, families, and state and local governments.
This year's report also includes an interactive map that allows users to quickly access a variety of cost data for each state. Find out child care costs in New York here:
http://usa.childcareaware.org/costofcare
.
Follow the conversation on Twitter: @USAChildCare #CostofCare
