GEEARS Commends Senate Study Committee on Access to Affordable Childcare

GEEARS: Georgia Early Education Alliance for Ready Students has spent over a decade building a movement of early childhood advocates in Georgia and developing strong relationships with elected leaders. We have been honored to be seen as trusted resources for members of the Senate Study Committee on Access to Affordable Childcare, which was created this year to study child care challenges and make policy recommendations.  

GEEARS commends the Study Committee on the recent release of their final report. The committee’s recommendations reflect a deep understanding of the challenges facing families, early childhood educators, and employers across the state. Through this process, GEEARS, along with our coalition partners, was pleased to meet with members, testify, and submit recommendations.  

The recommendations put forward by the committee—outlined below— have the potential to significantly transform the early care and education ecosystem in Georgia. If implemented, they will help provide more affordable and accessible child care, support the essential work of early childhood educators, and ensure that our youngest learners are given the foundation they need for future success. This is a critical step forward for Georgia’s families and the future of our state, and we hope to see these recommendations lead to meaningful change as we head into the 2025 Legislative Session. 

We would like to express our sincere gratitude to all committee members for their service and extend a special thank you to Chairman Brian Strickland for his leadership and vision throughout this process. 

Together as experts, advocates, and legislators, we now have the power to capitalize on this opportunity to make affordable, high-quality child care a reality for more Georgia families. And now, together, let’s cross the finish line and make these requests a reality by enacting them into law for our state’s families and early childhood educators.  

 1. Improve Workforce Recruitment, Development, and Retention: 

• Provide additional options for childcare workers to receive access to funding for childcare services. 

• Implement a refundable tax credit for early childhood educators. 

• Evaluate goals and state funding guidelines regarding pay for infant and toddler classroom teachers in reference to current Pre-K and K-12 teacher pay. 

• Consider enacting state laws concerning discrimination against and accommodations for new and expectant parents in the workplace. 

2. Expand Access to Serve More Families: 

• Increase the tax credit for child and dependent care expenses. 

• Prioritize the creation of a Georgia Child Tax Credit helping families with the youngest children offset the expenses they incur as their children reach school age. 

• Increase state funding for Child and Parent Services (CAPS) to provide access for more Georgia families. 

• Consider access to Pre-K for families with 3-year-olds in the existing program funded by the Georgia Lottery. 

• Consider grants to USG and TCSG schools to cover childcare for student-parents who are enrolled in programs that align with the state’s new High Demand Career List. 

• Encourage businesses to support their employees in accessing child care through cost sharing and other innovative initiatives. 

• Provide extensive evaluation of the current CAPS program and consider new funding models and policies to ensure that the program is serving all Georgia families and communities in the most efficient and equitable manner. 

• Study the concept of instituting a Georgia Child Care Trust Fund similar to that of other states. 

• Study whether a tri-share program similar to that of North Carolina or Michigan would be feasible, along with increased employer incentives for childcare access for their employees. 

 3. Increase Funding Opportunities for Childcare Providers: 

• Expand eligibility for Georgia’s tax credit for employer sponsored childcare and making the amount of that credit more generous. 

• Create and fund a Building Opportunities in Out-of-School Time (BOOST) 2.0 grant program and evaluate other new funding sources to account for programs with proven success and return on investment for families and communities in need of after-school programs. 

• Evaluate regional differences in CAPS reimbursement rates and other current reimbursement rates being provided under the existing program.