The Iowa Senate passed a bill Wednesday aimed at increasing access to full-day preschool for 4-year-olds and improving preschool quality.
The bill, proposed by Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds and amended by lawmakers, would use $16 million of existing child care funding for new partnerships that provide a full day of care to 4-year-olds in preschool, among several other changes.
Sen. Lynn Evans, R-Aurelia, managed the bill’s passage.
"It’s taking money away from existing functional programs and giving it to programs that do not yet exist.”Sen. Janice Weiner
“You’re going to see more efficiency,” he said. “You’re going to see more consistency across the state in … how those dollars are being utilized. And you’re going to see more access for the part-day preschool across the state in communities where that’s really needed.”
But some child care providers and Democrats are concerned that shifting and changing various early education funds will defund existing programs.
Senate Minority Leader Janice Weiner, D-Iowa City, said the bill is a power grab and is just moving money around.
“It’s a shell game,” she said. “We already heard there is no new money. It’s taking money away from existing functional programs and giving it to programs that do not yet exist.”
Bill would create continuum of care grants and consolidate ECI boards
The proposed $16 million program would offer grants to support partnerships between part-day preschool providers and child care centers to ensure 4-year-olds have full-day care. Reynolds has said it’s meant to help avoid situations where parents have to leave work to drive their kids from preschool to child care in the middle of the day.
It would be paid for with $11 million of existing state funds for Early Childhood Iowa and $5 million of federal funds, and the grants would become available July 1, 2026. The state education department would have to develop a preschool accountability system to track developmental and learning outcomes.
The bill would also consolidate the state’s 34 Early Childhood Iowa area boards, which allocate funding to local initiatives and services for young kids, into seven regions that align with the new behavioral health districts.
Evans said lawmakers responded to concerns about the ECI changes happening too quickly, and they amended the bill to delay that change to July 1 of next year.
The bill also would eliminate the Child Development Coordinating Council, which decides how to distribute $8.5 million annually, known as Shared Visions funding, to help at-risk young children and their families. It would instead have the Iowa Department of Education decide how to allocate that money.
Rachel Rockwell is executive director of Neighborhood Centers of Johnson County, a nonprofit that runs two highly-rated child care centers that already provide full-day preschool. She said the funding changes jeopardize about $650,000 of state grants they would typically get starting July 1 — and other sources won’t cover all of that.
“For organizations who are providing that continuum of care, which is part of the vision, and doing it to the highest quality standards that the state has put forth, how do they access those funds?” Rockwell asked.
She said the amendment delaying the proposed implementation of ECI changes would delay the loss of about $40,000. But Rockwell said that is “a drop in the bucket” compared to other funding sources the centers are slated to lose, including about $500,000 of Shared Visions funding and about $105,000 of a child care wraparound grant that the state decided to end.
Rockwell said state officials have asked providers to get families signed up for government-funded child care assistance to offset the loss of these funds. She said her staff has been working to do that, but there are still 16-20 families that aren’t likely to qualify. And she said the grants that were previously available provided more funding than child care assistance because they covered things like professional development and classroom materials.
“We’re zooming through our existing families and our waiting list and not finding families who qualify or can pay,” Rockwell said. “Starting July 1, things are going to look different for Neighborhood Centers until we can figure out how to fill that gap.”
Similarly, the Creston News Advertiser reports that a child care center in Afton is worried about the potential loss of Shared Visions and wraparound grants.
Lawmakers disagree about the impact of funding changes
Evans pushed back on funding concerns.
“There’s not going to be a loss of funds,” he said. “There’s just maybe a change in how they apply for those funds and how the ECI areas distribute those funds, but the funding is still going to be there.”
He pointed to a section of the bill that would allow community-based preschool providers to directly tap into state funding to provide at least 10 hours of preschool per week. Under current law, they can participate in the statewide voluntary preschool program only by partnering with a school district. Evans said the change will make more funds available for child care providers.
Rep. Tracy Ehlert, D-Cedar Rapids, said that may come at the expense of providers that are already offering full-day preschool.
She also said delaying the ECI changes will allow more time to find alternative programs with different funding sources to avoid eliminating some early childhood services.
“I think you’re going to see some of those swaps, and that’ll give them time to do it,” Ehlert said. “So it’s hopefully done in a more meaningful way. But ultimately, the programs that are offering wraparound [care] — they’re still going to have issues.”
She said programs that rely on Shared Visions funding are still at risk.
Bill would make assistance for child care workers permanent
A part of the bill that has broad support would allow child care workers to get government-funded assistance with paying for their own kids’ child care. The state started that policy as a pilot program in 2023, and then extended it last year. The bill would make that permanent.
“Getting more workers in the field was one of the targets of that program, and now we’re moving forward."Sen. Lynn Evans
Evans said it’s a great program.
“Getting more workers in the field was one of the targets of that program, and now we’re moving forward,” he said. “We’ve proven that it’s effective, and we want to continue that benefit.”
That policy is expected to cost $9.1 million per year, according to the Legislative Services Agency, with the state paying 60% of the cost and the federal government paying the rest.
The bill is now eligible for debate in the Iowa House of Representatives.
