The Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG), also called the Child Care and Development Fund, is the primary source of United States federal funding for child care subsidies for low-income working families and funds to improve child care quality.
Some states also provide child care assistance through Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) funds. States design their own child care assistance programs within minimal federal guidelines.
Child care assistance helps families succeed financially. When families receive child care assistance they are more likely to be employed and to have higher earnings. Approximately 1.8 million children receive CCDBG-funded child care in an average month. Yet, only one in seven eligible children receives child care assistance.
CCDBG was funded at nearly $5 billion in FY 2008; state are required to provide an additional $2 billion.