Child Care

Leave It to the States: Child Care in a New Age of Federalism

May 2026  ยท  Child Care In the United States, child care is a textbook market failure: unaffordable and inaccessible. Costs remain high, yet workers remain consistently underpaid. In Fair Care Marketplace, the Center for the American Family reenvisioned the care economy at the state level, combining the need for not only child care, but elder Leave It to the States: Child Care in a New Age of Federalism

Introducing: The Fair Care MarketplacE

The Fair Care Marketplace is a proposal for states to fix the failed care economy. By connecting families to state-licensed care providers, streamlining payments and benefits, and supporting care workers with fair wages and protections, the marketplace addresses one of the most pressing challenges facing working families today: the high cost and shortage of quality Introducing: The Fair Care MarketplacE