HARRISBURG, PA (July 14, 2025) — The principal partners of Early Learning Pennsylvania (ELPA), a statewide coalition of advocates focused on supporting young Pennsylvanians from birth to age five, applauded the Pennsylvania House’s bipartisan passage of House Bill 1330 this evening, which includes Governor Shapiro’s proposed investments in the early care and learning workforce.
The partners of ELPA issued the following statement regarding the passage:
“The Governor and Pennsylvania House of Representatives responded to the pleas of Pennsylvanians to prioritize early care and learning by investing in early childhood educators and ensuring that their critical work of caring for and educating young children is valued. These educators are the workforce behind the workforce in Pennsylvania, and their work matters to children, families, businesses and Pennsylvania’s economic security.
“We laud the fact that House Bill 1330 includes the following investments above FY 2024-25 appropriations:
- A $55 million investment in a new and recurring Child Care Recruitment and Retention line item to grant licensed child care providers participating in the child care subsidy program with $1,000 per educator
- $17 million in additional funding for Pre-K Counts and
- $16.2 million increase for infant/toddler Early Intervention and $38.1 million increase for preschool Early Intervention.
“The House action is a positive step toward a final budget agreement which demonstrates that Pennsylvania state lawmakers stand with families with young children on these essential pro-family, early childhood line items. Coalition partners encourage the Senate to support these investments and ensure that $9.5 million is provided for Pennsylvania’s Head Start Supplemental Assistance Programs in the FY 2025-26 Pennsylvania budget.
“These urgently needed investments will stabilize and reverse the exodus of early educators, directly benefit tens of thousands of early childhood professionals and help keep child care centers open so parents can go to work. Additionally, these investments will begin to reverse the billions of dollars in lost productivity and earnings suffered by working families and employers when families do not have the reliable child care they need.”
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