Editor’s note: This article went to press before the state budget was passed. Before the Governor signed the budget, he vetoed (blue-penciled) child care funds for former CalWORKs recipients (Stage 3). The budget also reduced funds for child care and other programs. The Campaign to Save Child Care is pushing for this funding to be restored (see additional resources). Also, check out our election coverage—some ballot measures could impact future budget delays.

 

As California spends more than three months without a state budget, early care and education programs struggle to keep their doors open while waiting for state funds. Teachers and parents are anxious—and taking action for a fair budget.

Impact of the budget delay

Centro Vida has been operating without funding since July and has exhausted loans and lines of credit, says executive director Beatriz Leyva-Cutler. Without a state budget, the program will have to end child care in October for families who receive state subsidies, and also lay off staff. 

Parents and staff are stressed, says Mago Tamayo, a long-time Centro Vida teacher and mother of three. “We’re thinking about this every night. If I lose my job, what am I going to do?” Children worry, too—she recalls a five-year-old saying, “Maybe I’m not coming to Centro Vida anymore because my mommy told me no more money.”

Yen Do’s son attends an afterschool program that is running on emergency funds. If the program closed, “it would affect me in a huge way,” says Do, a Parent Voices member and former CalWORKs recipient. “The only reason I can pay bills is because of child care subsidies,” she adds.

The Oakland Unified School District has “been forced to come up with extraordinary measures to continue providing child care,” says spokesperson Troy Flint—including layoffs and borrowing from other programs. “[But] every child is receiving the same service at the same cost as before.” The district found funds to keep centers open until December 31 and placed children in nearby programs when one center was closed.

Summer of activism

Parent Voices members have held actions, called and visited legislators, and testified at hearings nearly every week this summer, says statewide organizer Mary Ignatius—calling for a budget that protects child care and other services and raises revenues to pay for them. Teachers and providers have also been active, and programs have organized rallies.

Many legislators are pushing for a fair budget. “I am trying to make sure [legislators] hold the line on no more budget cuts,” says Assembly Member Sandré Swanson.

Advocates also urge people to vote for candidates and measures that support children, and tell others, “This is really important—I’m voting for what will protect children and working families,” adds Leyva-Cutler.

Resources for bridge funding

Some First 5 commissions are partnering with lenders  to offer bridge funding as a last resort for some programs: Del Norte, Humboldt, Lake, Sonoma, Contra Costa, Marin, Alameda, San Francisco, Monterey counties. Additional commissions are “in touch with provider communities,” adds Sherry Novick of the First 5 Association.

• Contra Costa and Alameda County First 5 Commissions offer loans to nonprofit providers with contracts for state preschool or general child development.
• First 5 Sonoma County offers bridge funding for state-funded organizations administering subsidized child care programs.

Northern California Grantmakers’ emergency loan fund offers low-interest loans for organizations with a government contract or approved grant. Contact: www.emergencyloanfund.org

Extra resources from the Children’s Advocate bulletin 

• The Campaign to Save Child Care continues to push for funding to be restored to Stage 3 child care and other programs cut by the recent state budget.
  http://www.rrnetwork.org/welcome/campaign-to-save-child-care-1.html
• The California Budget Project offers an analysis of the new state budget, including the Governor's line item vetoes.
  http://www.cbp.org/pdfs/2010/100618_Budget_Comparision.pdf
• Let the Governor and legislature know your views about the funding cuts and their impact on your family, early care and education program, and community. (go to http://gov.ca.gov/interact, www.legislature.ca.gov or the blue pages of your phone book).
• Cutting Child Care Out from Under Californians, from the UC Berkeley Center on Health, Economic & Family Security, is an analysis on the impact of potential child care cuts to California’s children, families, and communities.
  www.law.berkeley.edu/files/chefs/Child_Care_in_California_Sept_2010.pdf

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