The Iowa Child Care Experience Since 1996: Implications for Federal and State Policy

Publication Date: January 2002

Publisher: Center for Law and Social Policy

Author(s): Charles Bruner; Betsy Marmaras; Abby Copeman

Research Area: Social conditions

Type: Report

Abstract:

Among states, Iowa has one of the very highest rates of workforce participation by parents of both pre-school and school-age children. Therefore, Iowa has one of the highest needs for child care.

This paper describes the growth in Iowa's public child care subsidy and support system to help meet that need. Part One describes the growth in funding support in the context of the growth in need and
demand. Part Two examines how well Iowa's system has addressed issues of child care affordability, availability, and quality.

Since 1990, Iowa's public support for child care has grown dramatically, but primarily as the result of increased federal, as opposed to state, funding. While Iowa has made a major effort to create economic incentives for families to move from welfare to work through its earned income disregards, its support for increased or improved child care has been modest.