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Federal Register/Vol. 87, No. 18/Thursday, January 27, 2022/Rules and Regulations 4363
<br /> (SNAP).125 In other cases,policies like education on child development, Low-income households are also more
<br /> public charge and asset testing can positive parenting,coping skills, or likely to lose access to quality
<br /> discourage otherwise eligible recovery for mental health and childcare.131 The widespread closure of
<br /> households.126 While the gap between substance use.The interim final rule childcare centers combined with a lack
<br /> households that need assistance and the also included an enumerated eligible of access to paid family leave means
<br /> number of households participating in use for early learning services in parents in low-income households are
<br /> public benefit programs has always disproportionately impacted more likely to experience a reduction of
<br /> existed,narrowing that gap and communities,to address disparities in income or leave their jobs due to a lack
<br /> ensuring households receive the support education. of childcare options.132
<br /> they need is critical in mitigating the Public Comment:Childcare and Early Additionally,childcare providers
<br /> negative economic impacts of the Learning:Treasury received multiple serving primarily low-income families
<br /> pandemic. comments that were supportive of the were less likely to remain open during
<br /> Public Comment:Treasury has also provision of childcare. Treasury has also the pandemic because of tighter profit
<br /> received feedback from recipients and received multiple comments and margins and general community
<br /> stakeholders noting the need to increase questions indicating that recipients have financial insecurity, compared to
<br /> awareness and uptake of assistance identified a need for childcare for a childcare providers serving primarily
<br /> programs,including gaps that remain in broader range of households and high-income families.133 134
<br /> enrollment of eligible households in communities,for example those that In addition to disruptions to
<br /> programs to address the negative may need childcare in order to return to childcare, early learning services were
<br /> economic impacts of the pandemic.127 work,in addition to households and also significantly impacted by the
<br /> Treasury Response:Treasury has communities disproportionately pandemic,and the disruption of these
<br /> determined that this impact of the impacted by the pandemic. Several services had widespread ramifications
<br /> pandemic is widely experienced across commenters expressed uncertainty for learning loss,parental support, and
<br /> many jurisdictions and programs or about how childcare facilities should equity.Early learning centers have seen
<br /> services to increase awareness and interact with the boundaries of a QCT. declined enrollment across the board,
<br /> uptake of assistance programs would Finally, one commenter recommended though there was a larger dip in
<br /> respond to the pandemic's negative that pre-K or early learning services enrollment for low-income
<br /> economic impact in all communities.As encompass care for infants and toddlers, households.135 This lower enrollment
<br /> such,in the final rule,this use is eligible arguing that these types of care are often coincides with a diminishing workforce,
<br /> for any impacted household or class of more expensive or challenging to access as similarly to childcare,early
<br /> households,not only in for families. childhood educators have been leaving
<br /> disproportionately impacted Background:Childcare and Early the profession due to long hours,low
<br /> communities. Learning:As daycares and schools pay,136 and health and safety
<br /> 8.Promoting healthy childhood closed in-person activities during the concerns.137 As a result,children's
<br /> environments.The interim final rule pandemic,many working families were 8 school readiness has suffered,leading to
<br /> included programs and services that left without childcare during the day. potential long-term impacts on life
<br /> promote healthy childhood Although daycare centers and schools outcomes.138 The impact also extended
<br /> environments as an enumerated eligible have since reopened in many
<br /> use for disproportionately impacted
<br /> communities,there remains a persistent 131 U.S.Census Bureau,Phase 3.2 Household
<br /> households. The interim final rule listed childcare shortage as childcare Pulse Survey:Table 2.Childcare Arrangements in
<br /> employment levels have not fully the Last 4 Weeks for Children Under 5 Years Old,
<br /> three programs or services included rebounded since the sharp decline in by Selected Characteristics,(Washington:2021),
<br /> under this use:Childcare;programs to childcare employment at the beginning available at https://www.census.govlprograms-
<br /> rovide home visits b health surveys/household-pulse survey/data.html.
<br /> professionals parent educators, and of the pandemic.129 As a result,working 132Id.
<br /> professionals,
<br /> p
<br /> social service professionals to parents in communities across the 133 N.Kalluri,C.Kelly,&A.Garg,Child Care
<br /> country,and more specifically women, During the COVID-19 Pandemic:A Bad Situation
<br /> individuals with young children to may face challenges entering or Made Worse.Pediatrics(2021),https://doi.org/
<br /> provide education and assistance for reentering the labor force.130 10.1542/peds.2020-041525.
<br /> economic support,health needs,or 134 National Association for the Education of
<br /> child development;and services for Young Children,Am I Next?Sacrificing to Stay
<br /> 128 Women have carried a larger share of Open,Child Care Providers Face a Bleak Future
<br /> child welfare-involved families and childcare responsibilities than men during the Without Relief(December 2020),https://
<br /> foster youth to provide support and COVID-19 crisis.See,e.g.,Gema Zamarro&Mari'a www.noeyc.org/sites/default/files/globally-shared/
<br /> J.Prados,Gender differences in couples'division of downloads/PDF.
<br /> 125 United States Department of Agriculture, childcare,work and mental health during COVID— 135 G.G.Weisenfeld,Impacts of Covid-19 on
<br /> Household 19:11-40(2021)Econ Rev. . ,
<br /> Trends in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance 19, Preschool Enrollment and Spending,New
<br /> Program Participation Rates:Fiscal Year 2016 to available at https://link.springer.com/article/ Brunswick,NJ:National Institute for Early
<br /> 10.1007/s11150-020-09534-7;Titan Alon et al.,The Education Research 2021 ,htt s://nieer.or/w
<br /> Fiscal Year 2018(May 2021),https://fns-prod. ( ) p g p-
<br /> Impact of COVID-19 on Gender Equality,National content/u loads/2021/03/NIEER_Polic Brie
<br /> azureedge.net/sites/default/files/resource files/ p y_ f
<br /> Bureau of Economic Research Working Paper 26947
<br /> Trends2016-2018.pdf. Impacts-of-Covid-19on_Preschool_Enrollm ent and
<br /> 126 (April 2020),available at https://www.nber.org/ P _3_16_21. d
<br /> Jeremy Barofsky et al.,Spreading Fear:The papers/w26947. Spending .p g p f
<br /> Announcement Of The Public Charge Rule Reduced 129 See,e.g.,Center For The Study Of Child Care 136 Heather Long,`The pay is absolute crap':
<br /> Enrollment In Child Safety-Net Programs,Health Employment(CSCCE),Child Care Sector Jobs:BLS Child-care workers are quitting rapidly,a red flag
<br /> Affairs(October 2020),https://www.health Analysis(November 8,2021),https://cscce. for the economy,Washington Post(September 19,
<br /> affairs.org/doi/full/l0.1377/hlthaff.2020.00763. berkeley.edu/child-care-sector jobs-bls-analysis/; 2021),https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/
<br /> 127 See,e.g.,U.S.Department of the Treasury,By Emma K.Lee,and Zachary Parolin.The Care 2021/09/19/childcare-workers-quit/.
<br /> ZIP Code:Number of Children under Age 18 with Burden during COVID-19:A National Database of 137 Monash University,The emotional toll of
<br /> a Social Security Number Who Are Not Found on Child Care Closures in the United States,Socius COVID-19 among early childhood educators
<br /> a Tax Year 2019 or 2020 Tax Return but who (January 2021),doi:10.1177/23780231211032028. (August 5,2020)https://lens.monash.edu/@
<br /> Appear on a Tax Year 2019 Form 1095 and 130 Jason Furman,Melissa Schettini Kearney,and education/2020/O8/05/1381001/the-emotional-toll-
<br /> Associated Number of Policy Holders(June 2021), Wilson Powell,The Role of Childcare Challenges in of-covid-19-among-early-childhood-educators.
<br /> https://home.treasury.gov/system/files/131/ the US Jobs Market Recovery During the COVID— 138 Daphna Bassok and Anna Shapiro,
<br /> Estimated-Counts-of-Children-Unclaimed for-CTC- 19 Pandemic,NBER Working Paper No.28934(June Understanding COVID-19-era enrollment drops
<br /> by-ZIP-Co de-2 019.p df. 2021),https://www.nber.org/papers/w28934. Continued
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