The Effectiveness of Child Care Subsidy Programs for Low-Income and Unemployed Parents

Abstract

Low-income parents who care for children under six years of age are limited in their ability to find inexpensive private or public child care. While state and federal governments provide subsidies for this type of care, many critics argue that the cost of child care subsidy programs burden the already limited budgets of state and federal governments and provide very little benefit to unemployed and low-income parents. This thesis assesses the efficacy of three child care subsidy programs: the Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF), the Child Care Access Means Parents in School (CCAMPIS) program and the presence of state child care tax credits. These three programs are assessed by their ability to support low-income parents with children under six years of age and unemployed parents seeking to rejoin the labor force. The results of the study demonstrate that the CCDF and CCAMPIS programs are effective in their support of low-income parents with children under six years of age and that child care tax credits are effective in their ability to assist unemployed parents as they attempt to rejoin the workforce.