Hartford, CT – Governor Ned Lamont on Feb 15th, held a news conference in Hartford to announce that the fiscal year 2024-2025 biennial budget proposalthat he presented to the General Assembly last week includes several initiatives using a mix of state and federal resources to expand access to childcare services in Connecticut.

The governor is proposing to increase funding for Care 4 Kids – the state’s largest childcare program, which helps low and moderate-income families pay for childcare costs – providing $14.2 million in 2024 and $53.3 million in 2025 to support an increase of 10% for licensed providers and 5% for unlicensed providers in each year of the biennium.

Additionally, the governor’s proposal incentivizes employers to help with the costs of their employees’ childcare by providing businesses with a corporation business tax credit of 25% of any childcare cost subsidies they provide to their workers. It also incentivizes employers to build new childcare centers by providing a 25% credit for those associated costs.

“Childcare is an absolute necessity because access to these services from an early age is one of the best predictors of a child’s ability to achieve academic success throughout their entire school careers,” Governor Lamont said. “Additionally, access to childcare enables parents to work and provide for their families while their child is safe and receiving quality care. Increasing access to childcare has been a priority of my administration because the strength of our state is dependent upon the strength of our early childhood programs.”

“Access to quality, affordable childcare is essential to a thriving workforce and critical to getting parents back to work,” Lt. Governor Susan Bysiewicz said. “Parents deserve to have childcare they can depend on. Childcare is advantageous in preparing children for school, developing social skills, and setting them up to succeed later in life. I am committed to ensuring Connecticut remains the best state to raise a family.”

During his budget address last week, Governor Lamont announced that he is convening a blue-ribbon panel led by Office of Early Childhood Commissioner Beth Bye that will focus on designing the next generation of childcare, with incentives for the business community to provide more on-site support and to ensure the childcare system works for all stakeholders. It will include employers, providers, and families.

For more information on the governor’s budget and legislative proposals, click here.