This story was reported and written by VPM News.
A group of Virginia lawmakers, business leaders and nonprofits is calling for increased state funding to eliminate a waitlist that currently includes thousands of families seeking subsidized child care in the state.
According to a spokesperson for the Virginia Department of Education, as of Dec. 1, nearly 13,000 children were on waitlists for one of two programs that provide full-day, full-year child care at significantly reduced rates, depending on the family’s income: the Child Care Subsidy Program and Mixed Delivery.
The waitlist, which started on July 1 when previously allocated state funds ran out, represents growing unmet demand for affordable child care options in the commonwealth. About 3,000 children have been added to the waitlist since Sept. 1.
As VPM News previously reported, the waitlist also means some child care providers hoping to open new child development centers are in limbo.
“The numbers are continuously growing because our slots are not growing,” said Tomashia Cornitcher, chair of the Virginia Promise Partnership’s parent advisory group, during a Monday press conference at the General Assembly building.
The “Gotta Have Childcare” campaign estimates it would cost about $160 million to provide 12,000 additional subsidized child care slots.
According to Del. Carrie Coyner (R–Chesterfield), that figure assumes no change to parent copay amounts. However, the state’s Commission on Early Childhood Care and Education, which Coyner sits on, recently recommended some changes to CCSP — including potentially increasing the share that families have to pay.
Coyner said she sees eliminating the waitlist as a smart investment for several reasons — one being that access to high-quality early education is essential to ensuring a strong K–12 system.
“The less that we provide in those early years, the more expensive and harder it is to take care of our children when they're in K–12th grade,” Coyner said.
There are also workforce concerns.
Allison Gilbreath, policy director for Voices for Virginia’s Children, said she’s heard from parents who are either dropping out of the workforce entirely or working an overnight shift and caring for their kids during the day.
“What do you do when you have nowhere to place your child, and you're trying to pursue your education and work?” Gilbreath said. “You are in a conundrum. Not everyone has somebody to turn to to watch their child.”
Sen. L. Louise Lucas (D–Portsmouth) said the General Assembly “must build on last year's momentum and act now to sustain Virginia's child care system. We gotta have childcare, so our children are set up for success. We gotta have child care, so our parents are in the best possible position to provide for their families and drive our economy.”
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Virginia expanded income eligibility for CCSP — allowing thousands of additional families to access the program with the support of federal relief funds, including from the American Rescue Plan Act. But last year, Virginia lawmakers added more funding to the budget to ensure that all of the families funded with pandemic relief dollars wouldn’t lose access to child care.
Right now, there’s funding for approximately 47,700 slots between Mixed Delivery and CCSP in the state’s fiscal year 2026 budget — nearly 2,500 spots more than FY25.
Jason El Koubi, president of the Virginia Economic Development Partnership, said ensuring affordable child care is an important part of the commonwealth being able to attract and retain top talent.
“When you think about the kinds of things that will help attract people here, one of the ways that we can distinguish ourself is to make Virginia a place where you know that you will have the support you need to raise a family,” El Koubi said.
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