The Facts

Mayor Daniel Lurie says San Francisco will expand free child care for low and moderate income earners.

Under the plan, a family of four making under $230,000 can qualify for free care starting this month, and families up to $310,000 would get a 50% subsidy starting in the fall; the Chronicle reports it’s funded from a Proposition C reserve and could reach about 19,000 kids.

The program runs through the city’s 500+ providers and sets eligibility using Area Median Income (AMI) thresholds.

The Context

Until now, the Department of Early Childhood's Early Learning For All covered free tuition up to 110% of AMI (about $171,450 for a family of four) and a 50% tuition credit up to 150% of AMI (about $233,800 for a family of four).

This matters because annual child care costs can run $20k to $30k per child under 5—enough to push families out of San Francisco even when wages look "high" on paper.

The funding for this expansion comes from June 2018's Proposition C, aka "Baby Prop C." The tax is funded by a tax on commercial rents, ranging between 1% and 3.5%.

The GrowSF Take

Expanding child care support for middle-class families is good policy. We've seen many of our friends move away when starting their families, or seen friends struggle to pay for the basics if they chose to stay. It's simply too expensive to have children in San Francisco, and that must change. Bravo to Mayor Lurie for making this a priority, because our city simply doesn't have a future without children.