Since President Obama called for a federal investment in universal preschool as part of his February State of the Union address, early childhood advocates have been eagerly awaiting the answers to several key questions:
- How much funding is the president proposing to spend on universal preschool?
- How on earth does he propose to pay for it? (Recalling that in the same SOTU address Obama also promised his proposals would “not add a dime” to the federal budget deficit)
- Who would be served?
- Given that the administration is calling the program a partnership with states, what would states have to do to get the money?
Advocates got some of those answers in the president’s 2014 budget request, released yesterday. They are:
- $75 billion over 10 years. Looking at 2014 funding only, the budget request calls for $1.3 billion in mandatory spending for incentive grants to states to expand or create preschool programs and $750 million in discretionary spending for competitive Preschool Development Grants to build state preschool capacity. The budget also requests a $1.6 billion funding increase for Head Start, $1.4 billion of which would go to support new Early Head Start-Child Care Partnerships designed to significantly expand the number of poor infants and toddlers receiving Early Head Start Services, through partnerships between Early Head Start programs and community-based child care.
- Cigarette Tax! The administration is calling for an increase in the federal cigarette tax (to $1.95 per pack), which administration budget wonks say would generate $78 billion in 10 years. These funds would be used to support both preschool and an expansion of home-visiting programs targeted to at-risk, first-time mothers and their children.
- The administration is proposing to match a portion of states’ costs to provide preschool to low-income 4-year-olds (family income up to 200 percent of poverty). States that already serve most low-income 4-year-olds with their own funds could use the new federal funds to serve 3-year-olds or expand access to full-day kindergarten (if they do not already provide it). States that hit certain targets for participation of low-income children in preschool could also use funds to provide preschool to middle-class children, although the federal match rate would be lower.
- First of all, states would have to spend their own money to get the federal funds, but not that much of it—at least not at first? The administration is proposing that states cover 9 percent of the costs of the new preschool slots in the first year of the program, with the state share increasing over time to 75 percent in 10 years. (State match rates would be higher for states that qualify to use funds to serve middle-class children). In addition, to receive funding, states would have to have early learning standards in place. They would also be required to ensure that all preschool programs meet specific quality standards, including:
- Teacher qualifications and compensation (the U.S. Department of Education budget justification says teachers would have to have at least a bachelor’s degree and compensation “comparable” to K-12 public school teachers)
- Professional development for teachers and staff
- Low staff-child ratios and small class sizes
- A full-day preschool program
- Developmentally appropriate, evidence-based curricula and learning environments aligned with state early learning standards
- Ongoing program evaluation to ensure continuous improvement
- On-site comprehensive services.
The exact meaning of some of these quality components remains unclear, but few states currently meet all of them—meaning that many states with current preschool programs would have to make significant changes (and spend more money) to receive federal funds if the program were enacted with these requirements.
Of course, as is often the case, these answers raise even more questions. I’ll share some of these in the next post.
Photo Credit: Todd Wiseman
