LANSING, Mich. – With the U.S. House Appropriations Committee advancing the federal Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year 2026, Early Childhood Investment Corporation Chief Executive Officer Alicia Guevara issued the following statement:
“The bill approved today preserves level funding for core early childhood programs such as the Child Care and Development Block Grant and Head Start, but it does not keep pace with rising costs that providers and families are facing. Flat funding, in reality, means fewer resources reaching children, families, and the early educators who care for them. Eliminating the Preschool Development Grant – a critical resource that supports states to expand and innovate their own early childhood systems – further threatens the coordination work that states like Michigan rely on to improve families’ access to high-quality care and learning opportunities.
“We recognize the difficult choices that come with building a federal budget, but Michigan families need federal leaders to strengthen, not erode, the foundation we’ve been building for our youngest learners. As the process continues, we urge lawmakers in both chambers to prioritize children and families by protecting access to affordable child care, sustaining high-quality early learning, and ensuring parents have the health and other supports they need to work and provide for their children.
“Michigan has made important progress to grow early childhood programming in recent years, but that progress depends on strong federal investments. Every child in Michigan deserves the chance to start life healthy and supported, and ready to learn as they begin school.”