For parents of young children the decision to work strongly depends on the availability of affordable child care. Child care costs can take up a large portion of a family budget and may serve as an obstacle to work. In 2008 the National Association of Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies (NACCRRA) estimated that Kentucky families recently faced annual infant child care costs of $6,240 for full-time center care and $4,956 for school age children during non-school hours.2 These costs represent 20 to 25 percent of an average single mother’s annual income and rival the tuition costs of attending a 4-year college or university. In this policy brief, we describe the federal and state programs that address child care and discuss recent economic research on the links between parental employment and child care. In addition, we forecast the employment effects and costs of a child care subsidy in Kentucky.
Research
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PolicyInsights3.pdf