End of federal program funding childcare centers could impact local economy
LIBERTY CITY - Childcare centers expect to lose critical funding that could rattle South Florida's economy.
Federal support through the American Rescue Plan poured $24 billion into the industry. The program expires at the end of September.
"That's tough," Richard Rabb, who sends his one-year-old son to Liberty Academy in Miami. "That means a lot of mothers and families are going to be out of luck."
Ninety-eight percent of families with children at Liberty Academy use subsidies to pay tuition, the school's owner, president and CEO Sarah Brazier said. Those subsidies do not cover the entire cost of care, though, she said.
"The specific challenge (of losing ARPA funding) is making sure we can pay our staff and pay our bills," Brazier said.
Federal funding helped early learning centers give staff raises and keep them away from other jobs in a competitive market, according to Rachel Spector who directs programs for The Children's Trust.
The trust spends millions of dollars on a myriad of programs to help children and families in Miami-Dade County.
Without the ARPA funds, many childcare centers will have to charge parents more or diversify the way Liberty Academy did years ago. They added an elementary school to meet demand and widen the school's thin margins.
"It's going to be really challenging for centers to provide the high-quality care that our children deserve, whether they're in an underserved community or whatever community," Brazier said.
The issue could also impact the economy.
"If people are not able to have safe and high-quality early learning centers to leave their children, people might choose not to go to work or make other arrangements or choose to seek out other jobs," Spector said.
With minimum wage and rents rising and squeezing budgets, Brazier's Academy has a waitlist.
"If you look at other places it's very expensive, especially with a one-year-old," Rabb said.
The academy has 17 years of history and its owner expects to weather coming change. Still, they and others worry smaller child care centers could fall off a fiscal cliff and leave families desperate for quality child care on edge.