WEBVTT 1 00:00:07.320 --> 00:00:09.160 The trip Cast is brought to you by members of 2 00:00:09.160 --> 00:00:19.760 the Texas Tribune. Hello and welcome to the Texas Tribune 3 00:00:19.800 --> 00:00:24.519 trip Cast for December second, twenty twenty five. I am 4 00:00:24.519 --> 00:00:27.839 Matthew Watkins, editor in chief of the Texts Tribune, joined 5 00:00:27.879 --> 00:00:31.800 as usual by Eleanor Klibanoff Law and Politics reporter. 6 00:00:32.759 --> 00:00:34.479 Hello, Hello, thank you for having me. 7 00:00:34.920 --> 00:00:37.439 I got a little bit. I'm sure that I got 8 00:00:37.479 --> 00:00:41.079 through yah. We are joined this week by K through 9 00:00:41.119 --> 00:00:42.799 twelve reporter Jaden Edison. 10 00:00:42.880 --> 00:00:44.880 Hey, Jaden Greens. Hello, how are y'all? 11 00:00:44.920 --> 00:00:47.719 We were discussing in the newsroom. How great this sweatshirt looks. 12 00:00:47.520 --> 00:00:51.000 On It is a sweater trip cast. 13 00:00:51.719 --> 00:00:52.880 You're not watching on YouTube? 14 00:00:52.920 --> 00:00:54.079 This is one to watch on you. 15 00:00:54.759 --> 00:00:55.479 We look so cozy. 16 00:00:55.479 --> 00:00:57.359 Anybody in Texas just waiting on his weather so we 17 00:00:57.399 --> 00:00:58.520 can put out our winter fits? 18 00:00:59.280 --> 00:00:59.960 Yeah, exactly. 19 00:01:00.439 --> 00:01:04.239 Also joining us and also in a sweater, is David Fagan, 20 00:01:04.480 --> 00:01:07.680 director of Early Learning policy with Texans Care for Children. 21 00:01:07.680 --> 00:01:11.280 Hello, David, Hey, good to see y'all, and I was 22 00:01:11.319 --> 00:01:13.480 delighted to see you all also in sweaters. I didn't 23 00:01:13.480 --> 00:01:14.799 know how I was gonna dress for this, but I 24 00:01:14.840 --> 00:01:16.920 feel good, I feel welcome, and I feel cozy, So 25 00:01:17.200 --> 00:01:17.640 I need to. 26 00:01:17.560 --> 00:01:22.719 Talk David, the first Trip Cast guest to have played 27 00:01:22.760 --> 00:01:23.640 basketball with me. 28 00:01:23.920 --> 00:01:28.239 Oh wow wow. On five and five. 29 00:01:28.239 --> 00:01:30.000 It was an old game back in the day again, 30 00:01:30.280 --> 00:01:33.239 started by former Texas reporter now for the New York Times, 31 00:01:33.280 --> 00:01:37.840 Brian Rosenthal. We would play a weekly Saturday game Sunday game. 32 00:01:38.040 --> 00:01:42.519 Games still going on, although David David left us quit. 33 00:01:43.040 --> 00:01:46.799 Yeah, well, you know, the invite stopped coming. I think 34 00:01:46.840 --> 00:01:48.319 maybe I played too well or something. 35 00:01:48.799 --> 00:01:51.519 Yeah, the standard is too high. 36 00:01:51.560 --> 00:01:52.359 I love it, I get it. 37 00:01:52.799 --> 00:01:53.959 I don't want to embarrass anybody. 38 00:01:54.120 --> 00:01:56.480 Yeah. Yeah, we'll move on. 39 00:01:56.599 --> 00:01:59.280 You know, maybe someday we'll have robbed down in on 40 00:01:59.359 --> 00:02:02.200 the show and we talk about my vicious block of 41 00:02:02.280 --> 00:02:04.400 him and the one toy he played in that game too. 42 00:02:04.480 --> 00:02:05.400 He still talks about it. 43 00:02:05.599 --> 00:02:08.360 Yeah, that's why he left the Texas Tribune. 44 00:02:08.599 --> 00:02:10.520 It is, yes, because I kept bringing it up. 45 00:02:10.840 --> 00:02:15.120 Yeah, yes, but that's not what we're talking about today, 46 00:02:15.120 --> 00:02:16.479 although maybe we can talk. 47 00:02:16.319 --> 00:02:17.280 A little bit more about it. 48 00:02:18.120 --> 00:02:20.199 Of the conversation tapes and said we were going to 49 00:02:20.240 --> 00:02:24.919 talk about early childhood care early learning, a topic near 50 00:02:24.960 --> 00:02:28.599 and dear to the hearts of many working parents such 51 00:02:28.639 --> 00:02:31.039 as myself and David as we were talking about earlier 52 00:02:31.039 --> 00:02:34.759 before we started on. If you are a parent in 53 00:02:34.800 --> 00:02:40.039 Texas where both parents work, you know about the challenges 54 00:02:40.039 --> 00:02:44.199 of finding adequate care for your children. I remember when 55 00:02:44.400 --> 00:02:47.439 I was in Dallas when we had our first kid. 56 00:02:47.560 --> 00:02:49.319 You know, one of the first things you are told 57 00:02:49.479 --> 00:02:52.560 is a soon to be parent, is you better get 58 00:02:52.560 --> 00:02:56.360 on a childcare wait list as soon as possible. Many 59 00:02:56.360 --> 00:02:58.280 of the places in Dallas at the time the wait 60 00:02:58.319 --> 00:03:01.080 list was more than nine months, So you actually needed 61 00:03:01.080 --> 00:03:04.240 to get onto the wait list when you were thinking 62 00:03:04.240 --> 00:03:06.240 about having a kid, not even when you found out 63 00:03:06.319 --> 00:03:09.520 you were going to have a kid. The problem even 64 00:03:09.719 --> 00:03:14.960 worse in rural areas or for low income Texans. I 65 00:03:15.000 --> 00:03:17.719 am going to cite a stat that is from David 66 00:03:18.000 --> 00:03:20.879 that says that eighty eight percent of working families with 67 00:03:20.919 --> 00:03:24.400 low incomes live in childcare deserts, where demand is three 68 00:03:24.439 --> 00:03:30.400 times greater than the availability of high quality childcare seats. 69 00:03:31.120 --> 00:03:33.960 Two notable things happened this legislative session in this regard, 70 00:03:34.039 --> 00:03:36.719 the first one being the legislature approved one hundred million 71 00:03:36.800 --> 00:03:39.800 dollars toward childcare scholarships in an effort to shrink the 72 00:03:39.840 --> 00:03:44.120 nearly ninety five thousand member waiting list for those scholarships. 73 00:03:44.439 --> 00:03:47.800 The money was spent, the waiting list did not shrink, 74 00:03:48.159 --> 00:03:51.680 thanks in large part to increased childcare costs. We'll get 75 00:03:51.680 --> 00:03:54.000 into that here in a little bit. Second, the state 76 00:03:54.080 --> 00:03:57.360 voted a little bit more not under the radar politically, 77 00:03:57.400 --> 00:03:59.919 but under the radar toward this issue to approve a 78 00:04:00.120 --> 00:04:03.840 one billion dollar school voucher program. It was designed and 79 00:04:03.879 --> 00:04:06.639 touted as a way to use state dollars to help 80 00:04:06.719 --> 00:04:09.680 kids pay for their private school tuition. But what was 81 00:04:09.719 --> 00:04:14.360 not discussed as much was that the vouchers can also 82 00:04:14.400 --> 00:04:17.439 be used for private pre k something that the comptroller 83 00:04:17.519 --> 00:04:21.160 confirmed last week, so that could be a major change. 84 00:04:21.160 --> 00:04:23.639 But I want to start first with you, David, on 85 00:04:23.680 --> 00:04:27.720 this scholarship issue. Lay out for me, first of all, 86 00:04:27.759 --> 00:04:31.759 just what this program was and how it works. Just 87 00:04:32.160 --> 00:04:34.199 you know how it has worked over the years. 88 00:04:35.800 --> 00:04:38.680 So the Childcare Services program is managed by the Texas 89 00:04:38.720 --> 00:04:43.480 Workforce Commission, and it does so because it helps parents 90 00:04:43.759 --> 00:04:46.920 go to work. And the Workforce Commission is proud to 91 00:04:46.920 --> 00:04:49.920 have this as the largest line item of its budget 92 00:04:49.959 --> 00:04:53.720 is supporting this program. It provides financial aid, also known 93 00:04:53.720 --> 00:04:58.120 as scholarships or subsidies to eligible families who meet work 94 00:04:58.120 --> 00:05:01.079 and income requirements have a child under the age of thirteen. 95 00:05:01.399 --> 00:05:03.160 It gives them financial assistance so that they can go 96 00:05:03.199 --> 00:05:05.319 to work and their children can thrive in really high 97 00:05:05.399 --> 00:05:09.800 quality childcare programs. There's about thirty thousand Texas employers right 98 00:05:09.839 --> 00:05:12.639 now who have somebody working there who's there because they 99 00:05:12.639 --> 00:05:14.879 have access to one of these scholarships. So we know 100 00:05:14.959 --> 00:05:18.600 this is a really important program for the Texas economy 101 00:05:18.600 --> 00:05:22.360 and for Texas families. The funding has primarily come from 102 00:05:22.360 --> 00:05:25.800 the federal government the Childcare and Development Block Grant the 103 00:05:25.800 --> 00:05:29.600 Congress provides, but states around the country have infused additional 104 00:05:29.600 --> 00:05:32.639 dollars to serve more families. Prior to last session, Texas 105 00:05:32.680 --> 00:05:35.920 was not one of those states. Texas took the federal money, 106 00:05:35.959 --> 00:05:38.959 spent it, but did not add in any state dollars 107 00:05:39.240 --> 00:05:42.199 to serve more parents. We were excited that last session 108 00:05:42.639 --> 00:05:46.000 that changed, and as you said, one hundred million new 109 00:05:46.079 --> 00:05:49.920 dollars got invested into this program to serve more families, 110 00:05:50.040 --> 00:05:54.800 and we're excited that win happened, that it was bipartisan, 111 00:05:55.839 --> 00:05:57.480 But as we'll talk about, there's a lot more work 112 00:05:57.519 --> 00:05:59.959 to do to actually serve more families and bring down 113 00:06:00.120 --> 00:06:02.879 the very long wait list for that program, which sits 114 00:06:02.920 --> 00:06:04.439 at around one hundred thousand kids. 115 00:06:04.560 --> 00:06:06.800 Yeah, can you talk a little bit about just the 116 00:06:06.879 --> 00:06:10.160 discussion about this during the legislative session. I mean, I 117 00:06:10.519 --> 00:06:12.800 gave sort of my own personal experience at the top 118 00:06:12.839 --> 00:06:16.319 of the show. But you know, was it a reflection 119 00:06:16.600 --> 00:06:20.519 of the childcare problems in Texas that led to this 120 00:06:20.759 --> 00:06:24.839 larger infusion of cash and how was that problem discussed 121 00:06:24.879 --> 00:06:27.160 among lawmakers and people who came to the capital to 122 00:06:27.199 --> 00:06:27.920 advocate for this. 123 00:06:29.319 --> 00:06:32.120 Well, you know, I have been working on this issue 124 00:06:32.240 --> 00:06:36.920 in Earnest really since two thousand and seventeen or so, 125 00:06:37.480 --> 00:06:40.279 and I've sort of watched the journey of this in 126 00:06:40.279 --> 00:06:44.480 the Texas legislature where back then the conversation around childcare 127 00:06:44.519 --> 00:06:47.920 was almost exclusively on ensuring minimum health and safety standards 128 00:06:47.920 --> 00:06:51.319 were met by childcare programs. It was you guys might 129 00:06:51.360 --> 00:06:54.160 recall a big expose that was done by the Austin 130 00:06:54.160 --> 00:06:57.720 American statesmen around you know, children who had died in 131 00:06:57.800 --> 00:07:01.800 childcare programs, and that led to a series of reforms 132 00:07:01.839 --> 00:07:05.319 to try to crack down on unlicensed care. You know, 133 00:07:05.439 --> 00:07:07.959 there was some efforts to improve the nutrition standards in 134 00:07:08.040 --> 00:07:11.240 childcare but over the last few years there's really been 135 00:07:11.279 --> 00:07:14.199 a shift where lawmakers have understood, you know, we have 136 00:07:14.279 --> 00:07:17.399 a role too and actually ensuring families can afford high 137 00:07:17.480 --> 00:07:20.199 quality childcare, that the childcare that they can afford is 138 00:07:20.800 --> 00:07:24.000 not just safe, but supporting children's school readiness. And so 139 00:07:24.120 --> 00:07:26.439 going into session for really the first time, it was 140 00:07:26.519 --> 00:07:29.839 very clear that childcare was on the agenda. Both the 141 00:07:29.879 --> 00:07:34.199 House and Senate held interim hearings trying to tackle ways 142 00:07:34.240 --> 00:07:37.360 in which we can address this during the session. In 143 00:07:37.399 --> 00:07:39.959 my time, the Senate had never had a hearing on 144 00:07:40.000 --> 00:07:42.800 this topic during the interim, and so we knew that 145 00:07:42.839 --> 00:07:46.000 it was going to be a big priority. We didn't 146 00:07:46.040 --> 00:07:49.920 know how that would manifest, and you know, we worked 147 00:07:49.920 --> 00:07:53.120 with partners to really bring up this issue of the 148 00:07:53.160 --> 00:07:56.959 wait list, that there's children who are eligible for this 149 00:07:57.000 --> 00:07:59.920 program but are waiting for six months to two years 150 00:08:00.040 --> 00:08:02.920 because they're the lack of funds. This is not a 151 00:08:02.920 --> 00:08:05.360 program where every child who's eligible gets served. There's a 152 00:08:05.360 --> 00:08:07.639 certain number of scholarships we fund, and after that you 153 00:08:07.680 --> 00:08:09.560 have to wait for somebody to come off the program. 154 00:08:09.839 --> 00:08:12.000 And so there are families waiting because we don't have 155 00:08:12.079 --> 00:08:15.120 enough funds. You know, we told the stories not just 156 00:08:15.160 --> 00:08:17.360 of families who were struggling, but the families who actually 157 00:08:17.360 --> 00:08:20.319 benefited from this program. You know, we talked to a 158 00:08:20.360 --> 00:08:24.959 mom who was literally homeless before she got access to 159 00:08:24.959 --> 00:08:27.120 one of these scholarships. She was able to work a 160 00:08:27.160 --> 00:08:30.519 couple hours a week cleaning houses with her baby strapped 161 00:08:30.560 --> 00:08:34.960 to her because she had no childcare. She eventually got 162 00:08:34.960 --> 00:08:38.600 a scholarship. Now she's working full time, she's housed, and 163 00:08:38.679 --> 00:08:40.600 her child is in a really high quality program here 164 00:08:40.600 --> 00:08:44.159 in Austin. And we were able to tell stories like 165 00:08:44.200 --> 00:08:47.600 that and say, look at all of this program is achieving. 166 00:08:48.919 --> 00:08:51.679 Don't we want to see more Texas families benefit in 167 00:08:51.720 --> 00:08:54.240 the ways that these parents have. And so, you know, 168 00:08:54.320 --> 00:08:57.480 we also told the stories of frankly, lots of Republican 169 00:08:57.559 --> 00:09:00.960 led states around the country who to Texas and was 170 00:09:01.000 --> 00:09:04.360 really investing. And so between that, I think we were 171 00:09:04.399 --> 00:09:07.080 able to make a winning case that investing in this 172 00:09:07.120 --> 00:09:10.519 program is research based, it's popular, it's it's something we 173 00:09:10.559 --> 00:09:14.480 can do very simply in serving more parents. And so 174 00:09:15.200 --> 00:09:18.000 we were able to get that win. And I will 175 00:09:18.039 --> 00:09:21.960 say that the leadership of Representative Armando Wally was really key, 176 00:09:22.240 --> 00:09:24.879 as well as the speaker of the House and you know, 177 00:09:25.440 --> 00:09:29.320 the Appropriations Center finance chair chair women, chairwoman, and chairman. 178 00:09:29.759 --> 00:09:33.200 So it was a big bipartisan win for sure. 179 00:09:33.480 --> 00:09:34.879 Two things I sort of want to get your your 180 00:09:34.879 --> 00:09:37.840 read on is like what shifted this conversation and move 181 00:09:37.960 --> 00:09:43.039 childcare into the more like mainstream political conversation here. Yeah, 182 00:09:43.159 --> 00:09:45.240 one being you know, the thing I covered for a 183 00:09:45.240 --> 00:09:47.600 long time, which was the you know, ban on abortion 184 00:09:47.840 --> 00:09:50.799 and sort of this attention that Republican lawmakers sort of 185 00:09:50.840 --> 00:09:55.080 felt called to address, you know, women's health issues, supporting families, 186 00:09:55.120 --> 00:09:57.200 sort of making good on some of these promises that 187 00:09:57.240 --> 00:10:01.720 they brought to bear, which sort of I've searched seen 188 00:10:01.720 --> 00:10:03.279 that play out of the last couple of years. The 189 00:10:03.320 --> 00:10:05.360 other one being, though that I'm not as clear on, 190 00:10:05.480 --> 00:10:07.559 is like the COVID pandemic and the way that that 191 00:10:07.679 --> 00:10:09.360 sort of felt like suddenly we were all talking about 192 00:10:09.399 --> 00:10:11.159 childcare in a way we hadn't been before. 193 00:10:13.039 --> 00:10:15.559 Yeah, you're totally right. I mean it's not just in Texas. 194 00:10:15.639 --> 00:10:18.759 There was you know, we wrote a policy brief around 195 00:10:18.840 --> 00:10:22.240 as I mentioned, how different Republican led states have addressed 196 00:10:22.240 --> 00:10:24.200 this issue, and what you'll find is a lot of 197 00:10:24.240 --> 00:10:28.159 their big investments came right on the heels of you know, 198 00:10:28.240 --> 00:10:31.480 right after the pandemics sort of began in twenty one 199 00:10:31.639 --> 00:10:35.159 or in twenty twenty three, and so there has been 200 00:10:35.200 --> 00:10:37.200 an explosion of attention on this. I think there's a 201 00:10:37.200 --> 00:10:42.679 few reasons. One is the need for childcare became quite 202 00:10:42.759 --> 00:10:45.759 clear to people, many of whom were home with their 203 00:10:45.840 --> 00:10:48.919 kids all day. If their childcare program had to close, 204 00:10:49.080 --> 00:10:52.200 or you know, they had to take time off work 205 00:10:52.240 --> 00:10:53.879 to be with their kids at home, I think the 206 00:10:53.960 --> 00:10:56.840 need for childcare became very visible. The other thing that 207 00:10:56.840 --> 00:10:59.559 I think was really important was the federal government, under 208 00:10:59.559 --> 00:11:03.879 both the Trump administration and the Biden administrations, invested significant 209 00:11:04.440 --> 00:11:09.320 federal dollars into states to stabilize childcare. And what we 210 00:11:09.480 --> 00:11:13.039 found was that worked. It turned out that spending a 211 00:11:13.080 --> 00:11:16.600 lot of money to ensure that programs can retain staff, 212 00:11:17.080 --> 00:11:19.679 that they can receive funding so they don't have to 213 00:11:19.759 --> 00:11:23.200 rt increase costs on parents, that that's a very popular 214 00:11:23.320 --> 00:11:26.159 and effective way to help families go to work. So 215 00:11:26.559 --> 00:11:29.440 a lot of states saw once those federal dollars ran out, 216 00:11:29.480 --> 00:11:32.320 said what can we do to fill the gaps? And 217 00:11:32.600 --> 00:11:35.799 I think that it essentially served as an unintentional pilot 218 00:11:35.840 --> 00:11:39.480 program where states got to see, hey, if we invest 219 00:11:39.879 --> 00:11:42.440 money into these programs, we can get really good returns. 220 00:11:42.799 --> 00:11:46.879 And I think that's essentially opened the valve of investments 221 00:11:47.159 --> 00:11:49.200 that we're now seeing across the country. 222 00:11:50.440 --> 00:11:54.480 Yeah, it's I think also worth at least making the 223 00:11:54.519 --> 00:11:56.879 point that there has been a political shift, there's been 224 00:11:56.919 --> 00:12:01.000 a willingness to invest more money on this. You know, 225 00:12:01.039 --> 00:12:03.840 it was one hundred million dollars, which is a big investment. 226 00:12:04.399 --> 00:12:07.440 You know, the state did spend fifty one billion dollars 227 00:12:07.480 --> 00:12:10.440 on reducing property taxes this year, so there's there's something 228 00:12:10.480 --> 00:12:13.279 about the priorities there. But it's also worth pointing out 229 00:12:13.360 --> 00:12:17.399 that as your report on this, David noted that this 230 00:12:17.519 --> 00:12:21.039 money was you know, not actually state money that was 231 00:12:21.200 --> 00:12:23.840 being added to this. It was unspent federal dollars from 232 00:12:23.879 --> 00:12:27.879 the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program. That basically there 233 00:12:27.919 --> 00:12:30.480 was this pot of money that Texas had that had 234 00:12:30.519 --> 00:12:33.799 sort of decided not to spend, not to find a 235 00:12:33.919 --> 00:12:36.200 use for, and then they kind of decided, oh, maybe 236 00:12:36.200 --> 00:12:40.159 we should use it to boost this scholarship program. 237 00:12:40.279 --> 00:12:43.879 That's right. Yeah, it took quite a journey. The House 238 00:12:44.559 --> 00:12:47.720 passed in its budget one hundred million of state dollars 239 00:12:48.840 --> 00:12:52.440 that it evolved into, as you say, these unexpended tan 240 00:12:52.519 --> 00:12:57.720 OF funds. Our opinion on this, frankly is that the 241 00:12:57.799 --> 00:13:00.840 parents who will benefit won't really know the difference that 242 00:13:00.879 --> 00:13:03.360 it came from an unspent tantiff pot or an unspent 243 00:13:03.399 --> 00:13:07.200 general revenue pot. I think that the point is lawmakers 244 00:13:07.279 --> 00:13:10.399 found a way to make this investment, and we know that, 245 00:13:10.559 --> 00:13:13.840 you know, states across the country are using TANAF dollars 246 00:13:13.879 --> 00:13:17.080 for this purpose, so it's not a stretch to say 247 00:13:17.120 --> 00:13:20.039 that this is a really valid use of those dollars 248 00:13:20.080 --> 00:13:23.360 when we have them. I think that moving forward, we 249 00:13:23.360 --> 00:13:25.320 should look at that uninspent tant IF pot as a 250 00:13:25.320 --> 00:13:27.759 way to fund this program, but also state general revenue 251 00:13:27.840 --> 00:13:32.919 and continue to explore other revenue streams because this problem 252 00:13:33.000 --> 00:13:36.720 is significant. This is not something that is a one 253 00:13:36.799 --> 00:13:40.440 session fix or a even one funding stream strategy. We 254 00:13:40.519 --> 00:13:42.960 have to figure out how to make investments at the 255 00:13:42.960 --> 00:13:46.720 state level, the local level. Philanthropy is going to continue 256 00:13:46.759 --> 00:13:48.080 to play a role. It's going to take a lot 257 00:13:48.080 --> 00:13:50.360 of resources to really get this problem addressed. 258 00:13:50.559 --> 00:13:52.120 Yeah, you're sort of addressing what was going to be 259 00:13:52.200 --> 00:13:55.919 my next question. Which is how much of the need 260 00:13:56.000 --> 00:13:59.840 is this filling, how how much of this is moving 261 00:13:59.840 --> 00:14:03.159 the needle in terms of the childcare challenges in the state. 262 00:14:03.200 --> 00:14:06.000 I mean, you know, you talk about a wait list 263 00:14:06.039 --> 00:14:09.320 of ninety five thousand kids, I would imagine there's a lot, 264 00:14:09.399 --> 00:14:11.919 a lot, a lot more families that you know are 265 00:14:11.960 --> 00:14:14.799 struggling to pay for childcare in Texas. 266 00:14:16.039 --> 00:14:18.919 Yeah, no question. I mean, you know, maybe I'm burying 267 00:14:18.960 --> 00:14:20.919 the lead a little that, you know, we hoped that 268 00:14:22.000 --> 00:14:24.639 this investment, because of estimates that were provided by the 269 00:14:24.679 --> 00:14:28.200 Texas Workforce Commission during the legislative session, would essentially allow 270 00:14:28.279 --> 00:14:31.279 us to serve around ten thousand more children in the program. 271 00:14:31.279 --> 00:14:33.960 That was their estimates during the legislative session. However, after 272 00:14:33.960 --> 00:14:39.080 the legislative session, the Workforce Commission partners with the University 273 00:14:39.120 --> 00:14:41.879 of Texas, who conducts a survey to essentially figure out 274 00:14:41.879 --> 00:14:45.919 how much each of these scholarships costs, and that's based 275 00:14:45.919 --> 00:14:48.320 on the market rate of childcare. And what they unfortunately 276 00:14:48.320 --> 00:14:53.240 found was childcare costs are continuing to skyrocket and what 277 00:14:53.240 --> 00:14:56.480 that means is that the cost of scholarships skyrockets. And 278 00:14:56.480 --> 00:14:59.440 it's a simple math equation if each scholarship costs more, 279 00:14:59.679 --> 00:15:03.399 you can you know, you can't provide as many without 280 00:15:03.440 --> 00:15:05.840 increasing the amount of funds. So this hundred million dollars 281 00:15:06.279 --> 00:15:09.159 was just as essential as we thought it would be. Unfortunately, though, 282 00:15:09.559 --> 00:15:12.639 it was to prevent a reduction of the number of 283 00:15:12.639 --> 00:15:16.000 scholarships rather than to serve more families. So in fact, 284 00:15:16.039 --> 00:15:18.480 the urgency was actually even greater than maybe we presented 285 00:15:18.559 --> 00:15:20.840 during the legislative session, that we were actually at risk 286 00:15:20.919 --> 00:15:24.679 of having to serve fewer children in this program. Fortunately 287 00:15:24.759 --> 00:15:27.320 lawmakers came together to make this investment, but it's a 288 00:15:27.360 --> 00:15:30.039 reminder that we have so much more work to do 289 00:15:30.120 --> 00:15:32.720 to actually serve more parents in the program. 290 00:15:33.240 --> 00:15:35.480 So if one hundred million dollars sort of held the 291 00:15:35.519 --> 00:15:38.440 line or prevented, you know, this program from taking a 292 00:15:38.440 --> 00:15:41.240 step back. Is there like a dollar amount you guys 293 00:15:41.279 --> 00:15:45.000 see that would like what would it cost to make 294 00:15:45.039 --> 00:15:46.080 that weightless zero? 295 00:15:48.039 --> 00:15:50.679 You know, our goal has not been to make the 296 00:15:50.679 --> 00:15:53.759 weightless zero. I think that you know, even during the 297 00:15:53.799 --> 00:15:58.000 legislative session, we really tried to convey that the goal 298 00:15:58.039 --> 00:16:00.360 is to serve more families. You know, we can increase 299 00:16:00.399 --> 00:16:03.200 the wait lists just by doing a better marketing campaign, right, 300 00:16:03.759 --> 00:16:08.000 and that doesn't necessarily, but if we're serving more families, 301 00:16:08.039 --> 00:16:10.279 I think that's really the goal. So for us, I 302 00:16:10.320 --> 00:16:12.279 think we need to take this, you know, one step 303 00:16:12.320 --> 00:16:14.559 at a time and understand that it's going to take 304 00:16:15.600 --> 00:16:18.519 a number of years, a number of it's gonna take 305 00:16:18.559 --> 00:16:21.840 the state level, the federal level, the local level to 306 00:16:21.919 --> 00:16:24.879 really address this problem. In earnest, it's going to take 307 00:16:24.960 --> 00:16:28.559 us providing more funding for scholarships, but also doing more 308 00:16:28.600 --> 00:16:31.039 to bring down the cost of childcare so that this 309 00:16:31.159 --> 00:16:34.679 cost for scholarships doesn't continue to rise. You know, childcare 310 00:16:34.720 --> 00:16:38.159 programs are facing increased costs across the board, and parents 311 00:16:38.159 --> 00:16:40.279 are bearing the brunt of that right now. So we 312 00:16:40.320 --> 00:16:42.600 need to be able to tackle this one step at 313 00:16:42.600 --> 00:16:45.600 a time. I think we made good progress this legislative session, 314 00:16:45.639 --> 00:16:49.320 but lawmakers, I hope we're getting used to talking about 315 00:16:49.320 --> 00:16:52.919 this issue because it's not a one session conversation. Unfortunately, 316 00:16:53.200 --> 00:16:54.360 there's a lot more work to do. 317 00:16:54.639 --> 00:16:55.279 Before we move on. 318 00:16:55.320 --> 00:16:57.720 Can you just clarify, just to make sure I understand 319 00:16:57.720 --> 00:17:00.639 it correctly, who's eligible for this program? 320 00:17:00.679 --> 00:17:01.519 How do you get it? 321 00:17:03.159 --> 00:17:08.119 Yeah, so it's based on income. It's essentially eighty five 322 00:17:08.160 --> 00:17:10.519 percent of state median income, right, and you have to 323 00:17:10.559 --> 00:17:12.119 have a child under the age of thirteen. You have 324 00:17:12.160 --> 00:17:15.359 to be working or in job training, so there are 325 00:17:15.359 --> 00:17:20.279 work requirements in their income requirements. We also prioritize scholarships 326 00:17:20.279 --> 00:17:22.400 based on a number of factors, including if you have 327 00:17:22.480 --> 00:17:26.440 a child with a disability, or The legislature also passed 328 00:17:26.440 --> 00:17:28.279 to build a session that actually, if you're a child 329 00:17:28.359 --> 00:17:30.920 of a childcare educator, that you're part of this priority list. 330 00:17:30.960 --> 00:17:36.319 So we have priorities among those eligible children. But eighty 331 00:17:36.319 --> 00:17:39.839 five percent of state median income is what that main 332 00:17:39.880 --> 00:17:43.079 eligibility is. So a lot of families are eligible, but 333 00:17:43.200 --> 00:17:47.200 unfortunately the number of scholarships does not meet the demand. 334 00:17:47.720 --> 00:17:49.119 And I would imagine there's a lot of families that 335 00:17:49.119 --> 00:17:51.200 don't even know that this programming exists. 336 00:17:51.200 --> 00:17:53.039 Said you could double the weight list, probably with a 337 00:17:53.039 --> 00:17:54.000 good marketing campaign. 338 00:17:54.279 --> 00:17:55.319 Yeah right, exactly. 339 00:17:55.359 --> 00:17:58.279 Okay, let's pause for a second to hear from our sponsors. 340 00:17:58.279 --> 00:18:00.359 Then I want to bring Jaden in to talk about 341 00:18:00.359 --> 00:18:05.119 the school voucher angle to this. You can give every 342 00:18:05.200 --> 00:18:09.519 text and access to reliable information by giving news this 343 00:18:09.599 --> 00:18:14.440 Giving Tuesday, your donation strengthens public service reporting. Give now 344 00:18:14.519 --> 00:18:18.839 at Texastribune dot org, slash donate all. 345 00:18:18.880 --> 00:18:19.400 Right, Jaden. 346 00:18:19.559 --> 00:18:23.400 So we talked about one hundred million dollars toward these 347 00:18:23.720 --> 00:18:27.839 scholarships through the Texas Workforce Commission. Of course, ten times 348 00:18:28.039 --> 00:18:33.720 that amount was allocated toward school vouchers. The big brunt 349 00:18:33.759 --> 00:18:37.640 of that conversation, the big conversation among lawmakers advocates of 350 00:18:37.680 --> 00:18:41.359 this was that this is needed for you know, parents 351 00:18:41.359 --> 00:18:44.200 who have their kids in public schools, you know, over 352 00:18:44.240 --> 00:18:47.319 the age of five, who maybe are unhappy or not 353 00:18:47.440 --> 00:18:50.920 being served well by those schools, wanting to get state 354 00:18:51.000 --> 00:18:54.839 help to go to private schools. Less discussed was the 355 00:18:54.880 --> 00:18:58.119 issue that has now come up since the state Controller 356 00:18:58.200 --> 00:19:00.559 has been in charge of setting the rules for how 357 00:19:00.559 --> 00:19:03.079 this money will be dispersed, and that is money that 358 00:19:03.200 --> 00:19:05.960 goes to three and four year rolds to go to 359 00:19:06.000 --> 00:19:10.720 PreK programs, particularly private PreK programs that you know are 360 00:19:10.799 --> 00:19:14.200 run you know, all all across the state. Tell us 361 00:19:14.200 --> 00:19:17.319 a little bit about that discussion and where the state 362 00:19:17.440 --> 00:19:18.519 landed on the issue. 363 00:19:18.880 --> 00:19:20.759 Yeah, So I think it's important to understand kind of 364 00:19:20.759 --> 00:19:22.640 the process and the way things have played out. Right, 365 00:19:22.680 --> 00:19:25.359 So the law passes, which obviously says to framework for 366 00:19:25.480 --> 00:19:28.039 kind of how this is supposed to work. Now the comptroller, 367 00:19:28.200 --> 00:19:31.079 you know, Texas chief financial officers tasked with, hey, here's 368 00:19:31.079 --> 00:19:33.880 the law, here's the framework, now put this into action. 369 00:19:34.000 --> 00:19:37.079 Design kind of a set of basically rules that will 370 00:19:37.160 --> 00:19:39.839 allow you know, parents to be able to understand, for example, 371 00:19:39.839 --> 00:19:41.960 what kind of documentation you need to submit, how certain 372 00:19:42.000 --> 00:19:44.480 processes will work, things that it kind of gets into 373 00:19:44.519 --> 00:19:46.400 the details in the way that the law doesn't, right. 374 00:19:46.480 --> 00:19:48.960 And so what we've seen since the passage of the 375 00:19:49.039 --> 00:19:50.960 law was very much that process. 376 00:19:51.039 --> 00:19:51.200 Right. 377 00:19:51.200 --> 00:19:55.599 There was the introduction of proposed rules and also a 378 00:19:55.599 --> 00:19:58.680 public comment period for people Texans all across you know, 379 00:19:58.720 --> 00:20:01.559 to you know, for their insight and say hey, here's 380 00:20:01.720 --> 00:20:03.400 what we like, what we don't like, what you should change, 381 00:20:03.440 --> 00:20:06.799 what you shouldn't. And so what's happened in that process 382 00:20:06.880 --> 00:20:09.839 is that during the public coming period, they were about 383 00:20:10.119 --> 00:20:13.359 roughly two hundred to three hundred comments, right, and we reviewed. 384 00:20:13.720 --> 00:20:15.039 We were all the ones we could get right with 385 00:20:15.079 --> 00:20:17.839 about two hundreds. So and what we kept seeing was 386 00:20:17.960 --> 00:20:21.799 the overwhelming majority of those comments seemed to be from 387 00:20:21.960 --> 00:20:25.200 private pre K providers who were saying, hey, comtroller, you 388 00:20:25.240 --> 00:20:27.119 seem to have made a mistake, right, And what we're 389 00:20:27.160 --> 00:20:30.480 seeing in the rules that you proposed, was that private 390 00:20:30.599 --> 00:20:33.799 pre K you know families or you know pre K 391 00:20:33.880 --> 00:20:37.200 families in general, you kind of allocated and put them 392 00:20:37.200 --> 00:20:40.279 in the bucket of two thousand dollars per student, which 393 00:20:40.519 --> 00:20:44.000 under the law is actually designated for homeschool students. And 394 00:20:44.039 --> 00:20:46.000 what the argument was is that, hey, the law is 395 00:20:46.039 --> 00:20:50.000 pretty clear, you know, pre K students are eligible for 396 00:20:50.039 --> 00:20:53.319 the full roughly ten thousand dollars amounts that you set 397 00:20:53.319 --> 00:20:57.960 aside for everybody else outside of homeschool. And so basically 398 00:20:58.000 --> 00:21:01.079 it went through that process and we arrived at you 399 00:21:01.119 --> 00:21:03.519 know where we did and the most in last week basically, 400 00:21:03.720 --> 00:21:06.440 which was the comtroller, you know, after going through the process, 401 00:21:06.480 --> 00:21:08.920