Maryland
Working families in Maryland need accessible, affordable, quality child care and early learning opportunities for their children.
Currently, federal and state early learning programs reach thousands of young children and their families in Maryland. But too many working families in Maryland are missing out. As a direct result of child care issues, the Maryland economy loses millions of dollars each year in the form of lost earnings, productivity, and revenue.
There are 430k children ages 5 and under in Maryland – 71% of these children have all available parents in the workforce.
The typical annual cost of child care for an infant in Maryland is around $13,000.
The Child Care and Development Block Grant only reaches 8% of eligible families. This federal program helps low-income parents afford child care.
On average, child care providers in Maryland earn just $33,970 a year; this can make it a challenge to recruit and retain this workforce, leading to supply issues.
Maryland’s economy loses $2.2B annually due to child care challenges.
Maryland: In The Headlines
Opinion: It’s time to treat child care as a human right, and not a market commodity
Maryland Matters | September 15, 2025
By reframing child care from a commodity into a human right, we can shift the conversation away from whether or not child care is possible to being beneficial to families.
Early Head Start serves low-income Howard County families
The Baltimore Banner | September 24, 2025
According to the Maryland Family Network, around 1,100 kids live below the poverty line in Howard County. Since 2013, the Community Action Council has enrolled 3,500 children in Head Start programs.
Child care costs in Maryland among nation’s highest, analysis finds
Fox 5 | mAY 27, 2025
When looking at married couples with children, Maryland ties with California and Oregon for spending the highest percentage of their median income on child care – about $25,321 or 16%.
Maryland Resources & News
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ANALYSIS: FFYF’s 2025 State Fact Sheets
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2024 Child Care and Early Learning State Fact Sheets
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New Polling on Child Care and the 2024 Election
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FFYF Analysis of 2024 State of the State Addresses
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Total Federal TANF & State MOE Expenditures for Child Care & Early Learning in FY2022
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FFYF’S 2023 State Fact Sheets
Our new analysis of all 50 states and Washington, D.C. shows that child care and early learning programs have tremendous impacts on young children, their families, and the economy at …
New 50 State Analysis Shows Impact of Federal Child Care Program
New analysis of all 50 states and the District of Columbia from First Five Years Fund (FFYF) shows that while the nation’s main federal child care program – the Child …
How CCDBG Benefits Families in Your State
The Child Care & Development Block Grant (CCDBG) is the primary federal grant program that provides child care assistance to low-income working families with children under age 13. The majority …
FFYF’s 2022 Child Care & Early Learning State Fact Sheets
Our analysis of all 50 states and Washington, D.C. shows that the existing patchwork of federal and state early learning and care programs only reaches a fraction of income-eligible families. Federal …
Maryland — Federal Support for Early Learning & Care Opportunities
High-quality early childhood education is proven to dramatically improve a child’s opportunities for a better future—particularly children from low-income families—while offering parents improved job stability and overall economic security. To …
Learn About the Positive Impact of MIECHV in Your State
The Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting (MIECHV) program provides federal funds to states, territories, and tribal entities for voluntary, evidence-based home visiting services. This program was reauthorized in …
2021 State Fact Sheets: Examining the Impact and Unmet Need of Federal & State ECE Funding
FFYF has released the latest iteration of its annual state fact sheets, which draw on numerous data sources to offer details about the early childhood opportunities in each state made …
Maryland — Federal Support for Early Learning & Care Opportunities
High-quality early childhood education is proven to dramatically improve a child’s opportunities for a better future—particularly children from low-income families—while offering parents improved job stability and overall economic security. To …
FFYF Releases State Fact Sheets, Highlighting Unique Local Landscapes
This summer, FFYF released updated state fact sheets, which draw on numerous data sources to offer details about the early childhood opportunities in each state made possible through federal and state …
Maryland: Federal Support for Early Learning & Care Opportunities
High-quality early childhood education is proven to dramatically improve a child’s opportunities for a better future—particularly children from low-income families—while offering parents improved job stability and overall economic security. To …
Preschool Development Grant Funding Awarded to 26 States for 2020
UPDATE: The Administration for Children and Families (ACF) at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced additional three-year renewal grants are being awarded to South Carolina, Nebraska, and …
Updated Fact Sheets Show Opportunities for States
On Monday, the Center for American Progress (CAP) released their 2019 Early Learning Fact Sheets which provide an overview of early learning in each state. As in previous years, CAP’s …
See How All 50 States Use CCDBG Funding to Support Working Families Access Quality Child Care
Yesterday, our friends at Child Care Aware of America released a series of state fact sheets on the status of funding through the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) …
Maryland: Federal Support for Early Learning & Care Opportunities
High-quality early childhood education is proven to dramatically improve a child’s opportunities for a better future—particularly children from low-income families—while offering parents improved job stability and overall economic security. To …
46 States and Territories to Receive Preschool Development Grants
Big news! 46 states and territories have been awarded funding through the Preschool Development Grant Birth through Five (PDG B-5), a $250 million competitive federal grant designed to improve states’ existing early …
