Earlier this month, we learned that the Oregon Legislature moved forward a massive budget cut on the Department of Early Learning and Care (DELC). The $45 million cut in Senate Bill (SB) 5514 also halts any new investments in programs like Employee Related Day Care (ERDC), and reduces child care slots in programs like Preschool Promise and Healthy Families.
But the legislature still has the power to change course before the end of session!
Over the past several years, families, caregivers, and providers have shown up time and again to share their stories, plead for solutions, and help build a stronger child care system in Oregon. Just recently, on Day Without Child Care, we sent dozens of petitions and cards to lawmakers. The Oregon Capitol Chronicle wrote about the fight in the article, “Child care providers, parents call on Oregon Legislature to support subsidy program.”
For years, lawmakers have promised that they were listening. But these proposed budget cuts prove otherwise. These cuts are not just bad policy—they are a moral failure that puts Oregon’s families and early educators in greater crisis.
If lawmakers pass SB 5514, among the program cuts will be over 600 slots from Preschool Promise, a high-quality and free preschool program for low-income families in Oregon. This reduction comes at a time when the Trump administration is also unfairly targeting the Head Start program, so parents and caregivers are facing cuts to resources and support systems from both the federal and state government.
As highlighted in a recent article in the Oregonian, the legislature allotted an extra $171 million to ERDC to ensure it wouldn’t kick children already being served out of the program. And yet, the legislature continues to ignore our warning: Oregon families will suffer unnecessarily as a result of these cuts.
“As highlighted in a recent Oregonian article, the legislature allotted an extra $171 million to ERDC to ensure it wouldn’t kick children already being served out of the program. And yet, the legislature continues to ignore our warning: Oregon families will suffer unnecessarily as a result of these cuts.” (The Oregonian, Oregon early learning, child care programs poised for $45 million in cuts)
Let’s be clear: maintaining or cutting services and programs during a growing crisis is not leadership. It is a failure. Our coalition has warned for years that without bold, sustained investment, we will fall even further behind.
We’re not done. We’re working alongside Child Care for Oregon to make sure they hear us. From waving signs outside the Capitol as lawmakers arrive to the building, building power with our coalition, and convening a press conference to call on the legislature to change course.
Families across Oregon are watching, and they need more than words — they need action.
Ready to get involved? Join the movement! Tell your legislators that child care is a vital part of our infrastructure.