Excerpts:
State policy decisions on eligibility criteria, reimbursement, and additional aspects of child care assistance all affect families' access to the stable, high-quality child care that parents need to work and children need to be ready for school. These policies help to determine whether families can receive help affording child care, whether families receiving child care assistance have a choice of good-quality care, whether these families are still left with a significant cost burden, whether their children have continuity in their care, and whether providers serving these families are able to support high-quality care. As states look for cost savings at a time of tight budgets, it is important to recognize that changes in these policies have significant consequences for families who need financial support and children who need the learning opportunities that high-quality child care can offer.