Established in 2011 as part of the Early Years Study 3, the ECER is released every three years. It provides an accessible means of tracking and communicating the status of early childhood education across Canadian jurisdictions. The ECER is organized around the five categories highlighted by the OECD: governance, funding, access, learning environments and accountability. Each category is equally weighted around 19 benchmarks to form a common set of minimum criteria necessary for the delivery of quality programming. Thresholds for each benchmark reflect Canadian reality. Each has been achieved in at least one Canadian jurisdiction. As such, they are not aspirational goals, but rather minimum standards. The data sources and rationale for the benchmarks are summarized in the methodology and supplemented by profiles of each province and territory, as well as a review of federal policies impacting ECE. (author abstract)