Early learning may be winning more attention in the nation’s capitol these days, but the federal government is projected to spend less on children in the coming years, as funding from the economic stimulus package fades, a report found.
The good news is that overall federal spending on children, through Medicaid, child care grants and other programs, is expected to have reached 2.2 percent of the Gross Domestic Product last year, thanks in large part to billions of dollars in stimulus funding, according to a summary of a series of reports from The Brookings Institution and The Urban Institute.
The bad news is spending on transportation, bank bailouts, energy and other areas jumped even higher, which means “as a percentage of total federal outlays, spending on children is actually projected to decline, from 9.9 percent in 2008 to 8.2 percent of total outlays in 2009,” the report said.
If budget plans don’t change, federal spending on children would slip to 1.9 percent of GDP by 2019, the researchers reported.
Now these researchers had to assume budget policies wouldn’t change during the next nine years - and we know there is a good chance early learning will get more cash, at least during the next two years. For example, these numbers would change if Congress enacts something resembling President Barack Obama’s Early Learning Challenge Fund and if Obama renews his stated commitment to those ages zero to five and their parents.
Whatever happens in the next few years, the Brookings-Urban Institute report offers a great overview of how the federal government invests in the next generation.
For example:
“Spending more than doubles per capita between the infant/toddler years and elementary years. The nation invested on average $4,121 per infant and toddler (birth to age 2), $6,702 per pre-kindergartener and kindergartener (age 3 to 5), and $10,783 per elementary age child in 2004 (age 6 to 11).” – Public Expenditures on Children through 2008 – Key Facts. 3/10/10.
Not surprisingly, the majority of federal money for pre-kindergarteners and kindergarteners goes to children living in poverty, with nearly two-thirds of funds dedicated to low-income families, according to the report.
Further Reading:
(Thanks to the Foundation for Child Development for highlighting these reports.)