The 2026 Legislative Session came to a close last week. Children’s Alliance is proud to have worked alongside many powerful advocates and partners to create positive change for kids and families this session.

We’re excited to share our first set of state issue briefs focusing on early learning and child care. These briefs explore child care provider rates, the number of young children (ages 3-4) not in school, and other critical factors that affect families with young children.

Katrina, a Head Start parent, shares her experience and highlights the program’s full arc of support, from home visiting in pregnancy through pre-K graduation.

Washington is facing a severe budget crisis this session, and funding for early learning programs is at risk. We are particularly concerned about proposed cuts that will impact kids who are furthest from opportunity. 

To celebrate Child Care Provider Appreciation Day, we spoke to Lois A. Martin, MA, Director of Community Day Center for Children, about what brings her joy, the importance of racial equity in early learning, and the challenges that child care providers face.

Our state’s preschool programs score highly in the National Institute for Early Education Research’s State of Preschool report. Now lawmakers need to take steps to ensure more families can access them.

Session is wrapping up, and bills are starting to reach the finish line. We are excited to highlight some of the significant bills that passed the Legislature in 2024.

To meet the ever-evolving needs of communities and guarantee essential services, our state needs to generate revenue. Based on recent reporting, this means the state must pursue and secure more progressive sources of revenue going forward.

Over the weekend, the Washington legislature unveiled a new, two-year state budget that boosts funding for a variety of programs that will positively impact Washington’s children and families.

As we envision expanding and improving Transition to Kindergarten (TTK) classrooms, we also value protecting families’ present access to this program. Current TK classrooms should continue to operate as they prepare to become TTK classrooms.

Governor Inslee's proposed 2023-25 budget was released on December 14 and it contained a robust set of proposals to support Washington’s children and families.

We have an opportunity this 2023 legislative session to ensure all families have access to high quality early learning programs.

This July 1, kids and families across the state should begin to feel the effects of the Fair Start for Kids Act—the historic investment in early learning that state lawmakers passed during the 2021 legislative session.