News & Resources
FEATURED PRIORITES
Appropriations FY2027
For FY2027, Congress should protect, prioritize, and expand these investments in programs including the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG), Early Head Start/Head Start, and the Preschool Development Grant Birth through Five (PDG B-5).
Child Care is an Affordability Issue
“Affordability anxiety” is particularly high for parents of young children, where child care consistently stands out as one of the most significant and unavoidable expenses.
Modernizing Child Care
Modernizing the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) is essential to ensuring more working families can access the quality, affordable child care care they need.
2026 Early Head Start and Head Start
Head Start has a long history of giving kids a strong start through comprehensive early learning, health, and nutrition services. We are focused on continuing to bolster overall support for this essential program at the federal level.
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Celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month: A Deep Dive Into Dual Language Learners
As FFYF commemorates Hispanic Heritage Month, we take a moment to reflect on the remarkable contributions of Latinx communities across the United States. In recognizing and celebrating our nation’s Latinx …
STATEMENT: FFYF Executive Director Sarah Rittling on Senate Markup of FY24 Funding Levels for Child Care and Early Learning Programs
WASHINGTON – Today, the Senate Committee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies held a bipartisan mark up on proposed funding levels for child care and early …
STATEMENT: First Five Years Fund Executive Director Sarah Rittling on Proposed FY24 Funding Levels for Child Care and Early Learning Programs
“Federal funding provides the foundation for child care and early learning programs. Now is the time to bring greater support for working families and children, not reverse course. We urge …
Unprecedented Bipartisan Support for Robust Early Learning and Care Funding
As House and Senate appropriations requests come to a close, an unprecedented number of House members from both sides of the aisle have signed onto Dear Colleague letters calling for …
FFYF Executive Director Sarah Rittling Testifies Before Key House Committee On Child Care Funding
WASHINGTON – Today, First Five Years Fund (FFYF) Executive Director Sarah Rittling appeared before the Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies (LHHS) to testify about …
FFYF, Major Organizations Call for Increased Funding for Child Care Programs in FY24 Appropriations
WASHINGTON – Today, the First Five Years Fund (FFYF) and a coalition of 44 major early education advocacy organizations wrote to Congressional appropriators calling for increased funding for federal early learning and care …
FFYF Hosts Congressional Appropriations Briefing Highlighting Importance of Child Care Funding
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The First Five Years Fund (FFYF) hosted Congressional staff for a bipartisan briefing on the importance of federal early learning and child care programs and the need …
Congress Set to Approve Critical Funding Increases for Key Federal Early Childhood Education Programs
WASHINGTON – Today, Congressional leaders released their final FY2023 omnibus spending package, which includes prioritizing more than $2.8 billion in funding increases for core federal early learning and care programs, …
Bipartisan Path Forward For Year-End Package Lies in Early Learning & Child Care
WASHINGTON – Last night, top congressional appropriators announced that they struck a deal on a funding framework for the year-end FY2023 omnibus spending package. The First Five Years Fund (FFYF) joins …
Ahead of End-Of-Year Deal, Bipartisan Lawmakers & Members-Elect Agree Congress Must Work to Double Funding for CCDBG
As negotiations for the FY2023 spending bill continue, House and Senate members from across the aisle, members-elect for the 118th Congress, and leading national organizations agree that Congressional Appropriators must …
Data Finds Child Care Prices Continue to Rise Ahead of Midterm Elections, Outpacing Inflation
WASHINGTON – The average annual price of child care in America has increased nearly 220% over the past three decades — considerably faster than other essential family expenses — with …
