DataWatch: Striking the balance between affordable and livable is hard on Wisconsin child care providers

In some counties, infant care can cost more than a quarter of a household’s income. Survey data from the Wisconsin Department of Children and Families indicates that only 50% of child care slots are affordable, a far cry from the federal and state recommended 75%.

Wisconsin defines affordable child care as care that costs less than or equal to the maximum amount of money that can be provided by the Wisconsin Shares child care subsidy program. According to 2023 data , in Brown County, classified as 75-100% urban, the affordable rate would be $8.20 an hour for an infant in a group care facility. Weekly, it comes out to $328 for full-time care, which is about 22% of an average household income.

This rate is above about 50% of group child care facilities that provide care for infants instead of the expected 75%.

The department surveyed providers across the state and categorized them by how urban their county was and whether they had capacity for more or less than eight children. Any facility with more than eight was classified as a group center. The rest were family child care centers.

The graphic indicates how the prices these providers reported compare with the average household income across the region. The percentage of income needed for child care increases in more urban counties and decreases as the child gets older.

Across regions and ages, group centers’ prices were significantly higher than their family center counterparts. A quarter of providers charged more than 25% of the household income in the most urban counties. The state classifies Dane, La Crosse and Waukesha counties, among others, as 75-100% urban.

In region C, which includes Jefferson and Fond du Lac counties, most providers charge between 11% and 20% of an average household’s income per child. In the most rural regions, including Buffalo, Rusk and Vernon counties, the majority of providers charged between 12% and 19% for an infant or 1-year-old.

With lower prices, family care providers struggle to turn a profit and save up for their future. But if they raise their prices, they are often unable to fill seats, according to provider and advocate Corrine Hendrickson.

A longtime family provider in Green County, classified as 25-49% urban, Hendrickson said that she had to raise prices due to her support from the state Child Care Counts program being cut down alongside rises in necessary costs like property tax and liability insurance.

Now, for the first time in over a decade, she has three spots open for her day care in the fall. With state child care funding declining, Hendrickson anticipates that many facilities will be closing.

“I know a lot of us are struggling right now, trying to fill our spots this fall, trying to figure out how we’re going to stay open,” Hendrickson said. “I honestly think there’s going to be a lot this September.”

Wisconsin Watch is a nonprofit, nonpartisan newsroom. Subscribe to our newsletters for original stories and our Friday news roundup.

DataWatch: Striking the balance between affordable and livable is hard on Wisconsin child care providers is a post from Wisconsin Watch , a non-profit investigative news site covering Wisconsin since 2009. Please consider making a contribution to support our journalism.