Travis County child care funding outpaces its teachers

Travis County voters approved a property tax increase in 2024 to raise $75 million a year for child care. So far, $51.7 million has been committed, strategic adviser Leah Meunier said.

Now, the county is working to ensure there are enough teachers to fill the classrooms the money is meant to open.

A required minimum wage for teachers is coming this fall, and an Aug. 8 resource fair will connect families to care in the meantime.

What's happening

Raising Travis County has focused its early spending on scholarships that help families afford care. About 457 children are enrolled—roughly half the 1,000 the county committed to for the fiscal year, Meunier said.

"Two years ago, a family could easily get on the waitlist and know that there would be no hope that they would get off of it in time," Meunier said. "And now we're at a point ... where families can get on the waitlist, and several months later, get a call that they have a spot."

The problem

The county's studies point to a bottleneck that money for seats alone can't fix.

A 2025 landscape survey by United Way for Greater Austin, conducted after federal pandemic aid ended but before fund dollars reached providers, found local child care providers operating at 65% of licensed capacity, with just 16% fully enrolled.

More than 40% of teachers left over 12 months, driven by low wages, career changes and performance-related dismissals, per the survey. Lead teachers earned about $20 an hour, and assistants about $16.

"There's a lot of gaps in the current system, especially when it comes to the workforce, and having enough early childhood educators to ensure that we can fill all the classrooms now that we have the funding to put kids in care," Meunier said.

A second study found the same strain on the after-school side. The Andy Roddick Foundation's 2025-26 analysis found that of roughly 108,458 priority-population youth, only about 23% can access after-school programming, and 13% summer.

This study showed median frontline pay running from $20 to $22 an hour and 84% of providers calling compensation their most pressing workforce challenge.

Travis County Judge Andy Brown said the two landscape studies have given the county a clearer picture of where the need is greatest.

"Those findings are shaping the next phase of Raising Travis County by helping us focus our investments where they'll have the greatest impact," he said.

Brown said the county's priorities are expanding access to quality child care, addressing the need for care during nontraditional hours, and strengthening the early childhood workforce.

The wage issue

The county has committed $4.2 million in gap funding through Workforce Solutions, distributing about $3.78 million to roughly 150 providers so far. Providers can spend it flexibly, including on pay.

For the first time, the county's next round of "designated," or contracted, slots will require participating centers to pay a baseline wage, Meunier said.

The floor is being set using the city of Austin's adopted living wage—$22.05 an hour for fiscal year 2025-26—plus cost-of-living data and focus groups with providers, but the figure is not final until procurement.

"What does a director think they need to pay in order to recruit and retain staff?" Meunier said. "That is another mechanism that we're utilizing to try to figure out how do we create a system that is more attractive for early childhood educators."

What residents should know

Families qualify by earning at or below 85% of the state median income while working, job-hunting, or in school or training, Meunier said. Once approved, they choose any provider that accepts scholarships and has an open spot for their child's age. That parent-choice design is part of why not all 1,000 scholarships have been used—families may lack transportation, work long hours or struggle to find a nearby opening.

The county approved 11 new out-of-school-time contracts this spring, creating more than 5,000 openings for the coming school year. All but one include some nontraditional hours, such as early mornings, evenings or care on school holidays, Meunier said. Nontraditional-hours care for younger children is still being developed.

Meunier said the county will publish its first annual community impact report next spring, built from quarterly data submitted by every funded provider, and is separately procuring an independent third-party evaluator to analyze results. Both reports will live on the fund's website.

Brown said the studies will continue on a two-year cycle.

"Continuing these studies every two years will be essential as we'll be able to measure our progress and keep responding to the evolving needs of Travis County families," he said.

The impact

For providers on the ground, the fund is already changing who they can serve. Hillside Early Childhood Center, a NAEYC-accredited, Texas Rising Star 4-Star provider in a child care desert, has used Proposition A gap funding to raise the share of its enrollment made up of subsidized families to 22%, above the 20% floor it set for itself, said Suzanne Garza, head of school at the East Austin center.

Garza said the money helps close a persistent gap that forces hard tradeoffs for providers.

"Because state reimbursement rates do not reflect the true cost of delivering quality early childhood education, providers often face difficult choices when serving families who receive subsidies," she said. "Proposition A gap funding helps close that financial gap, allowing us to welcome more children while maintaining the quality that defines our program."

Where the money has gone

Commissioners received an update July 21 alongside the two studies.

Per the county's spring 2026 summary, committed funding totals $51.7 million. Of the $4.2 million in provider gap funding, about $3.78 million has gone out so far. Commissioners also approved a $340,000 United Way contract for small-business grants that help providers cover facility costs, such as repairs, expansions or opening new classrooms.

Get involved

Families can check eligibility and apply through Workforce Solutions Capital Area, and can sign up for the fund's quarterly newsletter on the Raising Travis County website.

Raising Travis County will host its first in-person community town hall and family resource fair Saturday, Aug. 8, from 10 a.m. to noon at the North Austin YMCA, located at 1000 W. Rundberg Lane. The free, family-focused event connects families with child care providers, out-of-school-time programs and community partners, with on-site registration available for some fall 2026 and 2026-27 school year programs. The morning includes children's activities and snacks.

Interpretation is available on request in Spanish, Arabic, Burmese, Chinese, Vietnamese and American Sign Language, and registration is available online.