Every year, Members of Congress send letters urging stronger funding for child care and early learning programs. These letters have always been bipartisan and widely supported. This year is no exception, with a record number of new lawmakers signing on for the first time to back child care programs nationwide.
For the fiscal year 2026, a total of 285 Members of Congress called for increased funding for federal early childhood education and care programs. This group includes 238 Democrats and 47 Republicans.
Key points include:
Head Start Program
The Republican letter supporting Head Start received 34 signatures, the highest in the past five years. Among these, 34% were first-time signers.
The Democratic letter had unprecedented support with 185 signers, including 35 new signers. Of these new signers, 18 were freshman lawmakers.
Child Care Development Block Grants (CCDBG)
On the Republican side, 46% of lawmakers signing the CCDBG letter were new signers, including six freshmen.
For Democrats, 25% of the signers were new, including 19 freshmen.
Overall Participation
This year, 39 freshmen members—33 in the House and 6 Senators—signed letters related to funding early learning and care programs.
In May, the First Five Years Fund (FFYF) led a coalition of 147 national and state organizations in calling for increased funding for federal early learning and care programs.
The appropriations process is a crucial period when legislators decide funding priorities for the upcoming fiscal year. Congress uses this process to allocate money for federal programs, activities, and priorities.
In total, seven “Dear Colleague” letters circulated, all calling for greater support and funding for core federal early learning and care programs.
