Kidsdata.org includes the following measures of early care and education:

• Children Ages 3-5 Not Enrolled in Preschool or Kindergarten, for regions with 65,000+ residents as 1-year estimates, by Age, and by Race/Ethnicity; 5-year estimates are also provided for regions with 10,000+ residents and for Legislative Districts
• Young Children Whose Parents Read Books with Them, by Frequency
• Annual Cost of Child Care, by Age Group and Type of Facility
• Availability of Child Care for Potential Demand
• Availability of Child Care, by Facility's Schedule and Type of Facility
• Number of Child Care Slots in Licensed Facilities, by Type of Facility
• Number of Licensed Child Care Facilities, by Type of Facility
• Parent Requests for Child Care, by Age
• Parent Requests for Evening/Weekend/Overnight Child Care

Child care is a critically important need for many families in the United States (1). High-quality child care centers and homes deliver consistent, developmentally sound, and emotionally supportive care and education (1, 2). Research indicates that high-quality early care and education can have long-lasting positive effects. Specifically, high-quality child care before age 5 is related to higher levels of behavioral/emotional functioning, school readiness, academic achievement, educational attainment, and earnings (1, 2, 3), and the gains are particularly pronounced for children from low-income families and those at risk for academic failure (1, 3).

However, finding affordable, high-quality child care is a major challenge for many families, and access differs based on geography, race, and income (3). In 2014, licensed child care was available for an estimated 25% of potential demand in California (i.e., children ages 0-12 with working parents) (4). And the cost is high. For example, center-based infant care costs in California made up an estimated 14% of the median annual income for married couples and 45% for single parents in 2014 (1). In 2014, California was ranked the 8th least affordable state for center-based infant care in the nation (1).

An estimated 40% of California children ages 3-5 were not enrolled in preschool or kindergarten in 2014. Percentages varied by racial/ethnic group and age. For example, in 2014, 45% of 3-5-year-old Hispanic/Latino children were not enrolled in preschool or kindergarten, compared to 34% of 3-5-year-old white and Asian American children.

In 2014, licensed child care was available for an estimated 25% of children ages 0-12 with working parents in California, but in some counties, availability was as low as 13%. And the total number of slots available has declined in recent years. Additionally, many child care providers do not fill all of their slots due to shortages of qualified staff or other issues, and providers’ schedules do not always meet the needs of families. For example, in 2014, only 2% of licensed child care centers offered child care during non-traditional hours. While family child care homes are more likely to provide care during non-traditional hours, they represent only about a third of the licensed child care slots in the state, and their numbers are on the decline as well.

In 2014, the average annual cost of licensed infant care was more than $13,000 in child care centers and nearly $8,500 in family child care homes. Care for preschool-age children was less expensive, but still over $9,000 in child care centers and almost $8,000 in family child care homes.

Early childhood is a critical period for cognitive, biological, and social development (1, 2). The quality of children’s environments and experiences during these years can have lasting effects (1, 2). From infancy, children are learning to relate to others and their environment while developing the skills to successfully navigate social, emotional, and educational challenges (2, 3). Research has shown that quality early education and child care can have positive, long-term impacts on child development, especially for children with low family incomes or other disadvantages (1, 2, 3). For example, children who attend high-quality preschools tend to have better test scores, fewer behavioral problems, and higher rates of high school graduation, among other long-term benefits (1, 2). Without access to high-quality early learning opportunities, children can fall behind their peers, creating an academic achievement gap that has been shown to widen with age (1, 2). However, many families have difficulty accessing quality early care and education, often due to a lack of program affordability or availability (1).

According to research and subject experts, policies that could improve early education and child care include:

• Increasing state funding for early care and education, tying funding to program quality and prioritizing care for infants/toddlers and children with the greatest needs (1)
• Requiring early education programs that receive public funding to participate in a continuous improvement process that includes benchmarked quality ratings, action plans for improvement, accountability measures, financial incentives, program support, and parent education efforts (1, 4)
• Creating adequate capacity for high-quality care and comprehensive learning programs for infants and toddlers, including full-day preschool for all low-income children ages 3-4, and integrating guidelines for easing the transitions from early care, to preschool, to the K-12 environment (1, 2, 5)
• Improving the state’s professional development infrastructure to prepare and support an effective early childhood education workforce that includes accessible, coordinated, standardized, high-quality training for educators and caregivers that is research-based and focused on applying knowledge to practice (1, 2, 3)
• Making the Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit fully refundable at the state level, targeting low and moderate income earners, regardless of tax liability, and encouraging other federal solutions to address the high cost of child care (6)