With a second round of funding in less than two months, Orange County has now committed $10.1 million in CARES Act money to help child care providers, a push that is believed to be the county’s biggest ever financial commitment to a sector that’s vital to working parents and their children.
About a week ago, the Orange County Board of Supervisors followed up an initial allocation of $5 million it made in October by approving a second $5.1 million from the county’s share of federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act dollars.
The $10.1 million sets a new precedent for the county’s cash commitment to supporting child care services, said Kim Goll, president and chief executive officer of First 5, the county’s Children & Families Commission.
“I’ve been in the county 20 years and I’ve never seen an allocation this large to child care,” Goll said.
“I mean, $10 million to child care is outstanding.”
Yessika Magdaleno, who has operated a home-based day care in Garden Grove for more than two decades, said she is grateful that the county is recognizing the needs of child care providers.
“Finally, the help arrived,” Magdaleno said.
“It’s going to help us a lot in many ways.”
Clear need
The county started accepting applications for the money from child care providers on Oct. 30. Since then, the number of eligible applicants (843), and the speed in which they applied, are indicators that a lot of child care businesses of all sizes have struggled during the coronavirus pandemic.
The “incredibly high turnout” in applications for the money “underscores the need to support child care providers during the COVID-19 pandemic,” Fourth District Supervisor Doug Chaffee, a First 5 commissioner, said in a news release.
Chaffee, along with First District Supervisor Andrew Do, led the effort to use some CARES Act money to help child care providers. The full board voted unanimously in support of the idea, expanding the allocation to $10.1 million at its Nov. 17 meeting.
Without the additional funds, the emergency grants would have been limited to only 350 applicants. Now it looks like all 843 who applied will receive funding, so long as they meet eligibility requirements.
At this point, with about $9.45 million in the distribution pipeline, the money is going to benefit at least 355 child care centers and 455 home-based family day care businesses, according to figures provided by Goll on Friday. Also in line for funding are more than 30 group care settings where child care is among a variety of activities provided, such as Boys & Girls Clubs.
The application and distribution process is being managed by the nonprofit Charitable Ventures. First 5 is covering all the administrative costs involved.
“The goal is to get every single cent out the door by Dec. 15,” Goll said.
Grant amounts for family child care homes are either $2,500 or $3,500; for child care centers it’s $175 per child; and for school-age group care, $100 a child.
Checks are already rolling out and must be used for defined purposes — payroll, upgrading the physical environment to meet COVID-19 health and safety protocols, or payment of rent or mortgage.
It’s uncertain whether county supervisors will designate any additional federal money to help child care providers. The county received a total of $554 million back in April, and, like other government entities with CARES Act money, faces a Dec. 30 deadline to spend it or lose it.
Goll was heartened by the money received so far by child care providers, but believes more support will be needed in the future to bolster working parents.
Preliminary findings from a First 5 analysis of child care in Orange County showed even before the pandemic the county suffered from a pre-existing shortage of affordable, licensed child care. The pandemic appears to be widening that gap: By the end of September, 65 family care providers and 10 centers had told state regulators that they were closing permanently.
“For us,” Goll said, “the biggest win was an acknowledgement that child care has to be part of any economic recovery.”
Small check, big help
Prior to Orange County earmarking CARES Act dollars for child care, neighboring counties, including San Diego and Los Angeles, had made similar awards, Goll said.
In October, Magdaleno, licensed to care for up to 14 children at her Little Flowers Family Child Care, vowed to be one of the first applicants when the funding was announced. She currently is caring for 10 children, some of them at night and on weekends.
Magdaleno ended up with a $3,500 grant that she said will be used to enclose a patio so that her day care can maintain social distancing rules and more time outdoors in cooler winter months. The grant, she said, will cover about half the cost.
“I’m very grateful because we were not sure if we were going to get any grants for this area.”
More resources
First 5 maintains a resource list for families with young children at occhildrenandfamilies.com.
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