Amendment would shift UPK private-provider payments into childcare assistance program; lawmakers seek fiscal study

A committee amendment discussed March 1, 2025, would preserve eligibility and regulatory standards for universal prekindergarten (UPK) but change the funding pathway for families who choose private prequalified providers: the Department for Children and Families (DCF) would pay tuition for up to 10 hours per week from the state portion of childcare assistance funds, rather than having that 10-hour amount flow through school district budgets and the education fund.

Beth St. James, education policy attorney with the Office of Legislative Council, told the House Human Services Committee the amendment "does not change eligibility requirements or the amount of funding. It changes the source of funding." The amendment would leave public-school UPK funding in the education fund and move the state-funded payment for private prequalified providers into the Child Care Financial Assistance Program (CCFAP) pool for a state-funded portion of that program.

Why it matters: committee members warned the amendment could preserve or even widen current inequities in access to prekindergarten because it changes funding flows without assigning responsibility for universal access to school districts. Lawmakers sought clarification about tuition-setting, enrollment rules and how different funding streams (education fund, CCFAP federal block grant and state match) interact.

How the program works now: under the current statute (16 V.S.A. a7 829) every child aged 3 or 4 who is not yet in kindergarten is eligible for up to 10 hours per week of publicly funded prekindergarten education. Parents may…