COUNCIL AGENDA: 4/26/2022
ITEM: 7.1
Memorandum
TO: CITY COUNCIL FROM: Mayor Sam Liccardo
SUBJECT: SEE BELOW
DATE: April 25, 2022
APPROVED:
SUBJECT: CITY ROADMAP – CHILD CARE: SPENDIG PLAN FOR AMERICAN
RESCUE PLAN FUDING FOR CHILDREN AND YOUTH FOCUSED PROGRAMS
AND SERVICES
RECOMMENDATIONS
1. Reinforce the targeting of the $400,000 currently proposed for 4.25 FTE positions in PRNS (“Childcare Program Staffing,” p. 4) for traditionally City-managed after-school, summer camps, and youth/ teen programming, to separate any pure “childcare” funding to ensure that such childcare spending is:
a. aligned with the Child and Youth Master Plan and City strategies to support the expansion and enhancement of citywide childcare programs, and b. supporting the transition of childcare services at city facilities to explore fully licensed, high-quality contractors, with subsidies for low-income families
2. Direct the City Manager to identify another $400,000 through the budget process from the remaining $1.1 million reserve to focus on child care gaps in the coming year, by:
a. Consulting with stakeholders, including SCCOE, First 5, and members of the Child Well-Being Working Group to identify the gaps and needs in the systemwide provision of child care services, with a particular focus on:
i. Subsidies for those low-income families who narrowly exceed the income ceilings in the state subsidies provided through SCCOE, and ii. capital needs for childcare facilities expansion or development that will meet "license-ready" childcare standards, and
iii. training and certification of child care providers. b. Ensure that dollars can be deployed flexibly and nimbly to accelerate the provision of child care amid this severe shortage of childcare services
3. Focus all funding for childcare facilities capital upgrades in those census tracts or neighborhoods that meet the state demographic and economic requirements to qualify for ongoing childcare subsidies provided through the Santa Clara County Office of Education, and to maximize service provision to struggling families.
4. Evaluate use of rental fees (paid for use of City-owned facilities by qualified childcare providers) to support ongoing childcare subsidies for low-income families.
BACKGROUND
We appreciate Staff’s diligent work with stakeholders and the community to develop a plan to allocate $10.5M in American Rescue Plan (ARP) one-time funding to support children and youth-focused programs and services.
The one-time nature of these dollars compels two important questions about their highest and best use: (1) what barriers pose the greatest impediments to low-income families that resources could help resolve in the short-term, and (2) what one-time investments can have impact without creating a dependence or expectation of ongoing spending that we may not be able to sustain? In other words, are there specific one-time investments that the City can make that will best boost the self-sufficiency of families to no longer need those same publicly-funded assistance programs?
The answer to both questions, in my view, is childcare.
We face an economic landscape unlike any other in memory. Unemployment rates appear exceedingly low by historic standards—hovering around 3% locally--and employers uniformly report an unmet need for talent and workforce. Yet long lines at our food distribution centers persist.
While many economists have scratched their heads to explain this mismatch of data and reality, one obstacle repeatedly emerges in my conversations with struggling parents: child care. One out of every five participants in our work2future workforce training program have reported childcare as a critical barrier to their return to the workforce. The true need is almost certainly much higher, because of the age demographic served by work2future. The lack of affordable child care options prevents thousands of San Jose workers—particularly moms—from re-entering the workforce. This barrier may well constitute the most direct barrier impoverishing our families, particularly in our communities of color. The inability of our parents to pursue job opportunities—and ultimately, career advancement—will confine families to lives of poverty for another generation.
So too, in California: according to the California Budget & Policy Center, 60% of California families lived in a “child care desert” prior to the pandemic, and three out of 10 care providers disappeared through the pandemic. The childcare crisis has grown more acute.
State childcare resources will help enormously, but we know that not all of our families who need help will qualify, in part due to income restrictions that may not clearly represent the high cost of living here. So, we need to give Staff the flexibility to deploy resources nimbly.
In March 2022, the City Council approved the allocation of Community Benefits from Google, which included $600,000 for childcare subsidies. With a recommendation to increase that funding pool by $400,000, an additional 250 workforce participants would have access to 100 hours of childcare support. If we learn that those participants will qualify for subsidies under the state program, then staff should nimbly look for opportunities to expand capacity in service provision, as suggested above.