Evaluation of Child Care Subsidy Strategies: Illinois Site Public Use Files, 2005-2006

Author(s): Collins, Ann; Abt Associates; MDRC;
Date Issued: August, 2010
Publisher(s): Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research
Description: The Evaluation of Child Care Subsidy Strategies is a multi-site, multi-year effort to determine whether and how different child care subsidy policies and procedures and quality improvement efforts help low-income parents obtain and hold onto jobs and improve outcomes for children. Funding from the Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) administered by the Office of Child Care are divided into two purposes. The vast majority are aimed at assisting children of low-income working parents whose eligibility is determined by states within broad federal guidelines, while a much smaller portion (4%) work with state matching funds to improve the quality of child care for all children. For this studies series, four experiments were conducted, two test alternative subsidy policies for low-income families and two test approaches to the use of set-aside funds for improving child care quality for all children. The four study sites and focus of evaluation include: (1) effectiveness of three language and literacy curricula on teaching practices and children's language and literacy outcomes (Miami Dade County, Florida); (2) impact of alternative eligibility and re-determination child care subsidy policies on parental employment outcomes (Illinois); (3) impact of alternative child care co-payment structures on use of child care subsidies and employment outcomes (Washington) and (4) effectiveness of training on Learning Games curriculum in changing care-giving practices in family child care homes and children's developmental outcomes (Massachusetts). The Illinois site of the Evaluation of Child Care Subsidy Strategies was designed to test the impact of increased income eligibility and extended redetermination period on various child care and economic outcomes (such as type of care used, stability of child care arrangements, earnings, employment, etc.). Under the state's 2005 program rules, a family was eligible for subsidies if their income was below 50 percent of state median income (SMI) for their family size, and this eligibility was redetermined for most families every 6 months. In the evaluation, income eligibility was extended to 50 to 65 percent of state median income, and the redetermination period was extended from 6 to 12 months. To isolate the impact of each programmatic change, families who qualified for the study were randomly assigned to one of three groups: (1) a control group, (2) a 6-month redetermination program group, or (3) a 12-month redetermination program group. Families in the control group received no enhanced access to subsidies; families in the 6-month program group were eligible for subsidies as long as their income remained below 65 percent of SMI and had to reapply for subsidies every 6 months; and families in the 12-month redetermination program group were eligible for subsidies with income up to 65 percent of SMI and had to reapply for subsidies every 12 months. In the follow-up survey, respondents were asked a series of questions about the following topics: Child Care Arrangements; Child Care Reliability and Flexibility, Satisfaction with the Care, and Costs; Employment; Major Life Events; and Income.
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Funder(s): Columbia University. National Center for Children in Poverty ; New Jersey. Department of Human Services. Office of Planning and Evaluation
Source: Collins, Ann. Evaluation of Child Care Subsidy Strategies: Illinois Site Public Use Files, 2005-2006 [Computer file]. ICPSR29001-v1. Ann Arbor, MI: Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research [distributor], 2011-05-27. doi:10.3886/ICPSR29001
Note: (1) The study was conducted by Abt Associates Inc, with its research partners MDRC and the National Center for Children in Poverty of Columbia University. (2) Project Director: Ann Collins, Abt Associates Inc. (3) Information on the OPRE Evaluation of Child Care Subsidy Strategies is provided on the following Web site: http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/opre/cc/ccs_strategies/index.html. (4) The phrase "public use" is used throughout the documentation, but restricted data is not available.
Topics: Policies > Child Care & Early Education Policies > Subsidies
Research Design:

This study included 1,884 families who applied for child care subsidies in Cook County, Illinois, between March 2005 and May 2006, and whose incomes exceeded the state's eligibility limits. Families were randomly assigned to a program group, which was approved to receive subsidies even though family income was above the usual eligibility limit, or to a control group which remained ineligible for subsidies as long as family income was above the state guidelines. In addition, a random half of the program group was asked to confirm its eligibility for subsidies every six months (the state standard) while the other half was asked to reconfirm eligibility annually. Of these families, 470 were assigned to the 6-month redetermination program group, 470 were assigned to the 12-month redetermination program group, and 944 were assigned to the control group. Because families were assigned at random to the program and the control groups, any systematic differences that emerged after random assignment can reliably be attributed to the policy change being studied.

To examine the effects of the program, data were collected from both administrative records systems and surveys of the study participants. Data from administrative records systems include information from an application form completed shortly before random assignment, monthly data from the child care subsidy system, unemployment insurance records on employment and earning, and records from the food stamp and Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) programs. One follow-up survey collected a range of information not available through administrative records, including a detailed history of each child care provider the family used, and information on the respondents' levels of satisfaction with the child care situation and on the reliability of the care, job problems related to child care, and out-of-pocket costs of child care.
Period Coverage: 2005-03--2006-08
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