Pa. allocates $51M in federal funds to help reopen child care centers

State officials will distribute $51 million to child care providers in an initial round of payments from federal stimulus funds, according to an announcement Wednesday from Gov. Tom Wolf’s office and the state’s Department of Human Services.

With many child care providers having been closed since mid-March to halt the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, some have expressed concern that they won’t be able to reopen due to the loss of tuition payments, an inability to cover their costs if they can’t operate at full capacity, or concerns over liability and safety, among other issues.

The funds will be released in June and will go to about 7,000 licensed centers, according to state officials.

“Child care providers are the backbone of our economy in many ways,” Mr. Wolf’s office said in a statement. “Without their work, children would miss out on an introduction to education that helps them throughout childhood, adolescence, and adulthood, and parents and guardians may have to stay home or not pursue education themselves. I cannot understate how valuable this work is to local communities and the commonwealth as a whole, and as Pennsylvania reopens, we need a robust and healthy child care system.”

The funds are part of $106 million allocated to the state through the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. The other money will be released after a study by DHS and Penn State Harrisburg’s Institute of State and Regional Affairs examining the pandemic’s impact on child care providers.

“Child care providers allow parents and guardians to go to work knowing their children are being cared for in a safe, nurturing, and educational environment. Without their service, we cannot have a fully functional economy, and we are committed to helping them weather this tumultuous period,” said DHS Secretary Teresa Miller in a statement. “This CARES Act funding allows us to support child care providers who are undoubtedly feeling the current strain on their businesses so they can continue to be a resource for families around Pennsylvania.”

Some advocates are concerned that the funds won’t be enough to preserve the state’s child care infrastructure.

“It’s a step in the right direction and it absolutely falls short of what programs need to survive this pandemic,” said Cara Ciminillo, executive director of advocacy group Trying Together.

“A lot of programs over the last two-and-a-half months have lost significant amounts of revenue from loss of subsidy co-pays and private-pay tuition [from families],” she said.

Additionally, providers will have a hard time in the coming months if they can’t operate at full capacity due to a combination of having to keep children in smaller groups due to health guidelines and some families keeping kids home due to lingering health concerns, Ms. Ciminillo said.