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Supervisor Spear urges bold investments, tri‑share pilots and sales‑tax options to address child care crisis
Summary
Supervisor Jackie Spear presented a county 'child care crisis' report citing high costs (county median cited at ~$128,000 across early childhood years), large gaps in infant and school‑age slots and suggested solutions including a centralized childcare portal, employer‑parent‑government 'tri‑share' pilot and possible 0.25–0.5¢ local sales tax dedicated to childcare.
Supervisor Jackie Spear delivered a wide‑ranging presentation Aug. 26 arguing that San Mateo County faces a child care emergency that is eroding workforce participation and family stability.
"Child care is not only a family need, it is a public need," Spear told the board, citing national and local data and a county estimate that infant care costs can exceed $30,000 annually and that the county faces a deficit of roughly 9,000 childcare spaces. She described the "benefits cliff" affecting middle‑income families and offered concrete proposals: a single, centralized childcare portal for real‑time availability and coordinated enrollment; a tri‑share model that splits care costs among parents, employers and government; and a targeted sales‑tax option (0.25¢–0.5¢) that could generate an estimated $60–120 million annually if approved by voters.
Spear framed the proposals as investments in workforce stability and economic mobility and urged colleagues to consider dedicated local revenue and pilot programs that could ease the immediate crisis while implementation of the Child Care Blueprint continues.
