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RELEASE: New Poll Finds Broad, Bipartisan Support in Georgia for Boosting Investment in Quality, Affordable Child Care
Press Release

RELEASE: New Poll Finds Broad, Bipartisan Support in Georgia for Boosting Investment in Quality, Affordable Child Care

Building an Economy for All, Restoring Social Trust in Democracy, Early Childhood, +1 More

Atlanta — Today, the Center for American Progress released a new report detailing the findings of a public opinion survey on the state of child care in Georgia and voters’ priorities for improving the system. The poll was conducted by GBA Strategies and surveyed 627 registered Georgia voters. A few key findings include:

  • 62 percent of Georgia parents with children under the age of 18 say that lack of access to quality, affordable child care is a serious problem.
  • Nearly 2 in 3 Georgia parents of children under 18 say that they or an immediate family member have had their careers or career prospects negatively impacted due to child care considerations.
  • Nearly 8 in 10 Georgians support efforts by state lawmakers to increase funding for quality, affordable child care or other early childhood education programs—with nearly  7 in 10 voters saying that they would be “more likely” to vote for a candidate who supports these efforts.
  • Increasing funding for child care is not a partisan issue for Georgia voters. Sixty-nine percent of Republicans, 73 percent of independents, and 88 percent of Democrats support additional funding.
  • A majority of Georgia voters believe that the state’s governor and state legislature are best positioned to improve access to quality, affordable child care—far outpacing those who believe that this problem will be solved by the private sector, Congress, or nonprofit organizations.

For a complete analysis of the poll results, please click here. The release of these findings comes on the one-year anniversary of the Child Care for Working Families Act, the leading piece of federal legislation to improve child care quality and affordability for working families. A new CAP analysis finds that under the legislation, 1.36 million Georgia children would be income-eligible for child care assistance, and the median family’s weekly child care payment in Georgia would not exceed $28.

For more information on this topic or to connect with an expert, please contact Colin Seeberger at [email protected] or 214.223.2913.