Dear Editor:
We all agree that childcare for children ages a few weeks to 5 years leads to more parents entering the workforce. More working parents is particularly important for low-income families. But, childcare costs are prohibitive for these families.
In Colorado, Head Start and the Colorado Child Care Assistance Program (CCCAP) pay much of the cost for children from low-income families to attend preschool. Together, these programs cost about 105 million dollars a year. About 80% of this funding comes from the federal government. Dividing 105 million by 3 million, the number of tax returns filed in Colorado each year, shows that about $35 per tax return goes to support preschool for children from low-income families. Is this a good investment of our tax dollars?
Considerable research conducted over the past 60 years has focused on this question. A good analysis of this research is available at: https://heckmanequation.org/. James Heckman is Director of the Center for the Economics of Human Development at the University of Chicago and a recipient of the Nobel Prize in Economics in 2000.
Prof. Heckman has analyzed results of two studies carried out in North Carolina in the 1970s. Children from low-income families were divided into two groups, those that received quality education and care and those that did not receive this service. Children ages 8 weeks to 5 years participated in the program. Children in both groups were followed through age 35 to determine the benefits of quality education and care.
Although the cost for these programs was considerable, Prof. Heckman’s analysis shows that the return on investment was 13% of the program cost per year extending through the life of the child. That is, benefits from reduced crime and K-12 education costs, as well as benefits from increased labor income, higher IQ, better health, and improved social-emotional skills completely offset the cost of the preschool program. The 13% return on investment means that the cost of the program is paid for within six years, and society continues to receive a 13% annual dividend for the rest of the life of the child
The children participating in these programs were from low-income families, just as the children enrolled in Colorado Head Start and CCCAP programs. Given the similarity in these programs, the investment Colorado is making in early childhood education and care programs pays for itself within six years and returns benefits to society for decades thereafter.
Governor Polis recognizes both the benefits of quality early childhood education and care and the fact that it has a great return on investment. Since 80% of the support for such programs comes from the federal government, cuts in federal funding will rob children of the benefits of preschool and prevent many parents from joining the workforce.
What is the better investment of our tax dollars? Keeping taxes low on families earning more than a million dollars a year or investing in early childhood education and care?
David Smith
