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CCRC’s research team conducted a study to examine how child care providers used one-time state and federal pandemic funds, and how providers were fairing now that those funds have dried up. The report found that these one-time funds served as a temporary stop gap instead of providing a sustainable, long-term solution to the issue of keeping ECE businesses sustainable under a severely underfunded subsidized care system. Now that these funds have dried up, many providers are struggling to make ends meet to keep their business afloat.

Inflation has increased the cost of operating child care programs, but reimbursement rates have not kept pace, leading to an unsustainable business for child care providers. This has resulted in many providers leaving the industry, making it difficult for working families to access child care. Shifting from a market rate cost model to a cost of care model, along with a 25% increase in provider reimbursement rate and waiving family fees, can help address the fiscal constraints faced by the child care industry and ensure families have access to quality care.

The CCRC Research team developed nine research questions to guide the evaluation of the Bridge Program and, with assistance from CDSS, selected 12 countries across California to participate in the evaluation. The two-year evaluation focused on the Bridge Program's implementation and enrollment process, what specific challenges participating agencies and staff encountered, as well as desired changes and recommendations for improvement to the Bridge Program.

The California State Legislature passed reforms last year to move toward a single reimbursement rate structure and increase child care provider rates to the 75th percentile of the 2018 Regional Market Rate (RMR). Despite these major advances, provider rates are still insufficient. Reimbursing providers at the 2018 RMR means we are paying providers based on outdated data, and we know inflation and the cost of providing care have both risen, especially during the pandemic.