Category: Policy

Innovative Leadership in Child Care For more than two decades, Colorado has led the nation in supporting child care through the Child Care Contribution Tax Credit (CCTC). This innovative policy allows taxpayers to receive a 50% tax credit—up to $100,000—for contributions to child care and related programs. HB 26-1004 continues the availability of the credit, ensuring that this powerful tool remains in place to support critical funding for Colorado’s child care system and the families and providers who rely on it. Supporting Colorado’s Economy Child care is not just a family issue—it’s an economic one. The shortage of infant and toddler care in Colorado costs employers an estimated $780 million each year in lost productivity (Council for a Strong America, 2024). Sixty-two percent of businesses report that child care is a factor in employee turnover, and one in three say child care issues factor “a great deal” into productivity losses (U.S. Chamber Foundation, 2022). Investment in child care is essential to Colorado’s economic health, and the CCTC helps make that investment possible. For every dollar spent on early care and education, $2.25 is returned to the state’s economy. In addition, for every child care job created, 1.5 additional jobs are generated (Early Milestones, 2016). Investing in Children and Families Through Public-Private Partnership Each year, more than 15,000 Coloradans provide $66 million in CCTC-eligible private donations to over 6,000 child care programs across the state. This support comes with only a $33 million impact on the state budget—representing a 100% return on the state’s investment in child care (Colorado Department of Revenue, 2026). For many organizations, the CCTC is a cornerstone of their ability to serve families: “The CCTC is a critical fundraising tool, allowing us to offer quality early learning programming for hundreds of children while their moms, all teenage mothers, are working toward their GED, high school diploma, further education, or attending the classes Hope House offers, allowing our moms to become self-sufficient and our children to start Kindergarten school-ready.” — Lisa Steven, Founder & Executive Director, Hope House Colorado By incentivizing private donations, the CCTC supplements and offsets the public funding needed to keep child care programs operating. Providers across Colorado leverage the credit to strengthen capital campaigns and fundraising efforts, helping them keep child care more affordable for families, expand access, train and retain their workforce, and keep their doors open.