Austin City Council on June 3 unanimously voted to send up to $16,000 to Pflugerville ISD to cover startup costs for a new pre-K classroom.

The PfISD agreement comes as part of a yearslong initiative by Austin officials aimed at affordable early child care for Austin and Travis County residents, and follows a similar investment council made in 2019 providing for four new Del Valle ISD pre-K startups. Funding comes from Austin Public Health’s fiscal year 2020-21 budget.

Prior to the item’s approval via consent, District 2 Council Member Vanessa Fuentes said the action could be followed by further funding for local affordable child care through federal aid money council has yet to allocate.

“Any opportunity that we have to expand affordable, high-quality early child care throughout our community is absolutely necessary,” she said. “I also wanted to comment that as we consider the American Rescue Plan dollars, that we also reinforce that commitment to expanding pre-K and child care options throughout our community, especially in our marginalized communities.”