New report reveals negative impact of legislative changes to child care policy and a better path forward

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June 25, 2015
In 2015 Fiscal Year State Budget, NC Budget and Tax Center, Women and the Economy

One of the most pressing concerns for any working family with children in North Carolina is to figure out a child care arrangement for children that allows parents to work and provide for their family, and allows children to learn and grow in a safe and stimulating setting when not in parental care. This is especially challenging because of the high cost of child care, as noted in these recently released state fact sheets by Child Care Aware of America. There are a few options available for families who earn low to moderate wages including the child care subsidy program which provides financial assistance to working families who need help paying for child care. Unfortunately this critical building block that makes life work for working families has been crumbling due to recent policy decisions by North Carolina lawmakers.

In our newest edition of Prosperity Watch, we feature a report released this month by NC Child detailing the impact made by child care subsidy policy changes passed by North Carolina lawmakers last year. These changes amounted to the loss of financial assistance for thousands of North Carolina families, including reducing income eligibility levels to qualify for the program, elimination of prorated fees for part-time child care (meaning many families will no longer be able to afford care), as well as counting income of a non-parent relative caregiver like a grandparent against the child’s eligibility for subsidies.

The map below provides a county by county breakdown of the more than 6,000 children who have lost or will lose access to child care subsidies from the change to the income eligibility provision alone.

PW 50-4

 

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Mom explains to kids why she’s proud to pay on tax day

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April 16, 2015
In Commentary, NC Budget and Tax Center, Raising the Bar 2015

Raising the Bar in North CarolinaEditor’s note: The following post by Beth Messersmith, NC Campaign Director with MomsRising.org, is the latest installment in “Raising the Bar,” a new series of essays and blog posts authored by North Carolina leaders highlighting ways in which North Carolina public investments are falling short and where and how they can be improved.

This week found my husband and I scrambling to make sure we had all of our I’s dotted and our T’s crossed as we hurried to make sure we had our taxes filed on time.

As he sat watching us from the couch, my almost ten-year old remarked about what a bummer it is to have to pay taxes. His sister stopped doing cartwheels across the living room long enough to agree and opine that she was glad that she didn’t have to pay them out of her allowance.

I guess I shouldn’t have been surprised. Anti-tax rhetoric is everywhere in the weeks leading up to tax day. Just that morning on the way to school the deejay on the morning radio show was talking about how much he hates paying taxes.

But their remarks were enough to make me stop my hunt for receipts and pull the kids onto the couch to talk to them about why —as a parent and a part of this country —I don’t mind paying taxes. In fact, I see it as part of my duty as someone who loves this country and benefits every single day from the investments we make as a society. And why, as a parent, I feel especially grateful for the investments we make in our children.

We started off by talking about their schools and the things that make schools work. They listed off their teachers, their supplies, the buses, even the buildings. Then I asked them who they thought owns our schools and employs our teachers. They’d never really thought about it. Explaining it to them gave me a chance to talk about how taxes are actually investments in our community and, in the case of schools, in the futures of the children who attend them. I shared how I benefited from public schools even before they were born as a student myself, as an employer looking to hire qualified people, and as a community member who benefits from an educated society. Read more

Lawmakers retreat from investing in early childhood in final state budget

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October 2, 2014
In 2015 Fiscal Year State Budget, NC Budget and Tax Center

Despite the fact that almost three-quarters of North Carolina voters support expanding NC Pre-K and Smart Start, state lawmakers continued a pattern of underinvestment in key early childhood education services in the state budget they passed this year. NC Pre-K is a proven program which helps prepare children for later success in life, yet lawmakers failed to keep up with the needs of young children in the budget. They provided a one-time $5 million increase for NC Pre-K, but these are not recurring dollars and most of the money goes to increase teacher salaries. While improving teacher pay is critical, there is little left over to provide additional Pre-K slots. This education program currently is not able to serve thousands of children on a waiting list and thousands more who would otherwise be eligible. This is just one example of the many trade-offs state legislators made due to their choice to prioritize tax cuts primarily for those at the top over needed investments in our children, families and workforce.

Child care subsidies, another effective program which helps lower income families afford quality child care and serves as a work support, also took a hit in this year’s budget. Like NC Pre-K, the child care subsidy program helps make sure young children have access to quality early education, and it also has a waiting list of thousands. Lawmakers did little to address the shortage of services and actually made it harder for some low-income families to access this support. They lowered the income eligibility requirements for children under five years old to 200 percent of the federal poverty level (about $39,000 for a family of three). The program used to be available to young children in families earning up to 75 percent of the state median income (about $42,000 for a family of three). The changes were even worse for school-age children using subsidies for after school care. One positive change lawmakers made in this year’s budget was to how much child care providers are reimbursed for serving children who get subsidies, bringing the cost per child closer to the market rate and helping providers recoup more of their expenses. However, providers still are not paid the full market rate, making it hard for many child care settings to accept children who receive subsidies.

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One in four: North Carolina’s child poverty rate remains the highest among all age groups

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September 23, 2014
In NC Budget and Tax Center, Poverty and Income Data 2013, Poverty and Policy Matters

Children face the highest poverty rate in North Carolina compared to other age groups according to data released last week by the US Census Bureau. After more than five years into an economic recovery, one in four children (25.2%) in North Carolina remained in poverty in 2013 –unchanged from 2012 and higher than the national child poverty rate (22%). At a time when we are experiencing an economic recovery, it is troubling that our state’s child poverty rate is not declining and remains significantly higher than the national average.

The numbers become even more meaningful when considering the disadvantages children in poverty face: less access to early education programs and high quality schools, food insecurity, higher stress levels and higher dropout rates, among other risk factors. Recent findings in brain development research also warn of the impact of toxic stress associated with poverty on a young child’s developing brain. Toxic stress can weaken the architecture of a child’s brain, creating long-term challenges that make it hard for one to be economically secure as an adult. Other numbers are rising for children across the nation and in North Carolina that we certainly don’t want to see on the rise. Infant mortality and child mortality has increased in North Carolina. There has also been a rise in the number of homeless school children, according to recently released national data. Both are indicators of poverty’s tight grasp on America’s and North Carolina’s children.

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Last film in Moral Movies series – Inequality for All – shows in nine cities across NC this month

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July 15, 2014
In NC Budget and Tax Center

In case you’ve missed it, there has been a phenomenal film series going on this summer throughout North Carolina, which concludes this month with screenings of “Inequality for All” in nine cities from July 22nd – July 31st. The Moral Movies film series, which also included showings of American Teacher, American Winter and Freedom Summer, is sponsored by Working Films, NC NAACP, NCAE, Tar Heel Alliance of Classroom Teachers, Democracy NC, NC State AFL-CIO, NC Justice Center and a number of local partners.

The films offer a way for North Carolinians to see informative documentaries on multiple issues such as education, poverty, workers’ rights, voting rights, civil rights and inequality, and discuss their implications in the context of our state’s current policy environment and the continuing march towards social and economic justice. Following each film, attendees are provided opportunities to take action to improve the lives of all North Carolinians through improving investments in education, raising wages for workers, ensuring broader access to voting rights, or decreasing a widening income and wealth gap. Hundreds have attended one or more of the films in the series around the state, which kicked off in April with American Teacher.

The last film in the series, Inequality for All, features Robert Reich – professor, best-selling author, and Clinton cabinet member – as he demonstrates how the widening income gap is having a devastating impact on the American economy. Reich suggests that the massive consolidation of wealth by a precious few threatens the viability of the American workforce and the foundation of democracy itself. The film unfortunately resonates clearly with North Carolina’s experience given that recent legislative developments such as continued underinvestment in education and economic development, a lopsided tax plan giving big breaks to wealthy taxpayers and corporations while increasing taxes on the majority of working families, limitations to living wage policy and inaction to move towards a living wage has contributed to growing inequality.

Don’t miss your last chance to participate in Moral Movies and register to attend a screening near you this month:

Schedule of Screenings:

Winston Salem: Tuesday July 22, 6 p.m. (RSVP)

Green Street United Methodist Church, 639 S Green St, Winston-Salem, NC 27101

Fayetteville: Tuesday July 22, 6 p.m. (RSVP)

The Main Library, 300 Maiden Lane, Fayetteville, NC, 28301

Asheville: Friday July 25, 7 p.m. (RSVP)

Ferguson Auditorium at AB Tech, 340 Victoria Rd. Asheville NC 28801

Greenville: Tuesday July 29, 7 p.m. (RSVP)

Unitarian Universalist Congregation, 131 Oakmont Dr. Greenville, NC 27858

Raleigh: Tuesday, July 29, 7 p.m. (RSVP)

Community UCC, 814 Dixie Trail, Raleigh, NC 27607

Durham: Thursday July 31, 6:30 p.m. (RSVP)

Durham County Public Library Auditorium, 300 N Roxboro St. Durham, NC 27701

Greensboro: Thursday, July 31, 7 p.m. (RSVP)

Central Library Nussbaum Room, 219 N Church St. Greensboro, NC 27405

Wilmington: Thursday, July 31, 7 p.m. (RSVP)

Cameron Art Museum, 3201 S. 17th St. Wilmington, NC 28412

Charlotte: Thursday, July 31, 7 p.m. (RSVP)

Unitarian Universalist Church of Charlotte 234 N Sharon Amity Rd, Charlotte, NC, 28211

 

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