The White House released today its Fiscal Year 2027 budget proposal, laying out the Trump Administration’s funding priorities for the coming year. While Congress retains authority over funding decisions, the administration’s proposal largely fails to meet the moment for early childhood educators and the children and families they serve. This proposal, if approved by Congress, would fail to invest new and needed resources in critical child care and early learning programs as costs continue to rise for programs and families, while eliminating or cutting funding from other critical supports and programs. 

Among other priorities, the President’s FY27 budget proposal would:   

• Keep funding for the Child Care and Development Block Grant flat, even as costs rise for programs and families.  
• Keep Head Start funding at current levels, while proposing concerning shifts to program standards that could negatively impact program quality for children and families with the lowest incomes served by the program.  
• Increase funding for IDEA Part C (Early Intervention) by $50 million but consolidate Preschool Special Education funding into a special education block grant to states, creating a risk that funding currently used by states to support access to preschool for children with disabilities could be redirected for other purposes.  
• Eliminate funding for the Child Care Access Means Parents in Schools (CCAMPIS) program, which supports access to campus-based child care programs for student parents. 
• Eliminate funding for Preschool Development Grants Birth through Five, which provides states support in improving quality and better coordinating state early childhood programs and systems.  

NAEYC’s latest workforce survey clearly demonstrates that our child care and early learning system is fragile, and that costs are rapidly rising for programs and families. NAEYC is committed to working with members of Congress on both sides of the aisle to understand the experiences and needs of early childhood educators and the children and families they serve. And we will continue to advocate for additional resources for programs that support access to high-quality early learning opportunities that benefit children, families, educators and our broader communities and economy.