An unexpected $44.5 million state budget cut is driving up child care costs for low-income parents in Tennessee. It's also waitlisting those who apply for child care assistance and putting the early childhood education centers that serve them at risk of closing.

The reduction is tied to the federal Child Care Development Fund, which uses a formula to divvy up resources to each state. While the formula and the fund itself have not changed, an increase in median income in Tennessee and a decrease in children who use free and reduced-cost lunch changed how much the state got this year.

See Full Page