President Signs 2020 Spending Bill with a $1 Billion Increase in Early Childhood Education Funding

December 20, 2019

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contact: Suzanne Arnold, [email protected], (609) 610-4957

WASHINGTON, D.C. (December 20, 2019) – President Trump has signed the fiscal year 2020 spending bill, which includes over a $1 billion dollar increase in funding for early childhood education programs.

“This increase in funding for crucial early childhood education programs will make a huge difference in the lives and futures of kids across the country,” said Mark Shriver, President of Save the Children Action Network (SCAN). “I applaud our policymakers on both sides of the aisle for prioritizing children, and realizing that by investing this money in kids now, we are investing in the future of our great nation.”

Highlights of the bill include:

  • Head Start and Early Head Start funding increased to $6 billion, an increase of $550 million from FY2019
  • Child Care and Development Block Grants (CCDBG) increased to $5.8 billion, an increase of $550 million from FY2019
  • Preschool Development Grants increased to $275 million, an increase of $25 million from FY2019
  • 21st Century Community Learning Center funding increased to $1.25 billion, an increase of $30 million from FY2019

“This is a great victory to end the year with and provides that extra motivation and excitement for the year ahead, especially for all of SCAN’s incredible volunteers who tirelessly advocate for kids across the country,” said Shriver. “The bill signed today is a direct result of their activism.”

This year, SCAN’s advocates generated nearly 180,000 messages to Congress, urging them to increase funding for early childhood education programs, so that each and every child in the United States is given the opportunity to thrive.

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Save the Children Action Network is the political voice for kids. We believe that every child deserves the best start in life. As the political advocacy arm of Save the Children, we’re building bipartisan will and voter support to make sure every child in the U.S. has access to high-quality early learning, that the U.S. takes a leadership role in serving the most marginalized and deprived children globally and that children arriving at our southern border are respected and humanely treated. By investing in kids and holding leaders accountable, we are helping children everywhere survive and thrive. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.