The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) Office of Advocacy recently issue a brief detailing the role of small businesses in the child care industry.
The brief also fills in data gaps in child care industry research.
Between 1990 and 2022, the cost of child care spiked 230 percent, greater than the price growth rate of all other items and more than 25 percent greater than the growth of income.
Between 1997 and 2021, small child care businesses have comprised nearly 99.9 percent of the national child care market, but in recently years large child care small businesses have been increasingly acquiring smaller businesses.
The number of exits of small child care businesses with four to 10 employees began increasing at a faster pace than the number of new entries after 2011 while the number of exits of small child care businesses with fewer than four employees began increasing at a faster pace than the number of new entries after 2013.
Most states have experienced decreases year-over-year changes for small child care businesses.
In April, U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), U.S. Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship chairwoman, convened a hearing to discuss America’s broken child care business model and how to support small business child care providers.