{"id":402797,"date":"2026-07-17T22:48:37","date_gmt":"2026-07-17T22:48:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/402797\/"},"modified":"2026-07-17T22:48:37","modified_gmt":"2026-07-17T22:48:37","slug":"measure-c-has-sent-53m-to-alameda-county-childcare-centers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/402797\/","title":{"rendered":"Measure C has sent $53M to Alameda County childcare centers"},"content":{"rendered":"

The crisis of childcare affordability and availability has become so acute that cities and states across the country have been taking action to address it. Universal childcare initiatives \u2014 programs that provide access to free or low-cost childcare for families regardless of income \u2014 have been announced in New Mexico<\/a>, New York<\/a>, and San Francisco<\/a> within the last year.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In Alameda County, the Measure C sales tax, approved by voters in 2020, is a step in that direction, supporters said. Over the past year, millions of dollars in tax revenue have been distributed to childcare providers to help pay staff, expand subsidized childcare slots, upgrade facilities, and strengthen the childcare infrastructure in Alameda County.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt would cost us about a billion dollars, really, to fully fund early care and education, and we have roughly $115 million to $150 million annually to program,\u201d said Kristin Spanos, the CEO of First 5 Alameda County<\/a>, the agency administering the funds. \u201cSo while it\u2019s not close to a billion dollars, it\u2019s an impactful amount.\u201d<\/p>\n

Though it was approved by voters six years ago, the tax faced a legal challenge from the Alameda County Taxpayers Association, who claimed that the ballot measure needed a two-thirds majority vote to pass, not a simple majority. Sixty-four percent of voters supported the tax when it reached the ballot in March 2020. A lower court decided that the win was legitimate, and then, in April 2024, the California Supreme Court declined to review the case<\/a>, allowing the county to move forward. During that four-year period, the tax amassed $400 million.<\/p>\n

Last June, the Alameda County Board of Supervisors approved a five-year implementation plan<\/a> for Measure C, clearing the final hurdle for money to begin flowing.<\/p>\n

First 5 Alameda County administers the funds in conjunction with a community advisory council of providers and parents appointed by the board of supervisors and the Alameda County Early Care and Education Planning Council.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In its first year of managing Measure C funds, First 5 has distributed more than $53 million in emergency grants to childcare providers who together serve more than 15,000 children; another $10 million in grants to family, friend, and neighbor caregivers; and $12 million in grants to upgrade childcare facilities. The funding came at a crucial moment \u2014 after the industry had been upended by COVID-19 lockdowns, which caused dozens of childcare facilities to close, and as California expanded transitional kindergarten for 4-year-olds, a population previously served in private daycare settings.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWe started to see people notice that family childcare providers and educators are essential workers and they were open, taking care of doctors\u2019 and nurses\u2019 kids so that people could go to work,\u201d said Priya Jagannathan, the co-director of Oakland Starting Smart and Strong<\/a>, a collaborative that works to improve early childhood education in Oakland, of the pandemic period. \u201cFor decades, we\u2019ve been asking providers and educators to do this incredibly important work without the resources that they need, and Measure C is the hope that we\u2019re finally aligning public investment with the true value of what early care and education provides.\u201d<\/p>\n

Grants fund facility improvements and worker stipends<\/p>\n

Phillesha Brown has worked in childcare for 10 years and owns Auntie Phi\u2019s House of Magic in deep East Oakland. During the pandemic, she worried about whether she\u2019d be able to keep her doors open. When the state expanded transitional kindergarten to all 4-year-olds<\/a> last fall, her business took another hit as that age group moved en masse from private preschools to public school classrooms.<\/p>\n

\"20260716_PhilleshaBrown_EG_07\"\/Brown outside of Auntie Phi\u2019s House of Magic Learning Academy, her in-home childcare and preschool program on July 16, 2026. Credit: Estefany Gonzalez<\/p>\n

\"20260716_PhilleshaBrown_EG_15\"\/Brown used some of her grant money to buy more soft and sensory toys for her playroom. Credit: Estefany Gonzalez<\/p>\n

\u201cDuring the school year I only have one to two kids in the morning, when I used to have up to eight,\u201d she told The Oaklandside. \u201cNow we\u2019re putting more money into marketing; it\u2019s not just word of mouth anymore.\u201d<\/p>\n

Brown applied for and received a $40,000 emergency grant from Measure C, which allowed her to pay a stipend to her staff and renovate her backyard with turf and a play structure.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Louisa Padilla, who runs Ms. Honey Family Childcare in East Oakland, opened her facility to serve families who are on waitlists for state subsidized childcare, but also working-class people caught in the middle, like her daughter, who has a child with a disability.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cMy daughter needed childcare and they said she made too much to get assistance,\u201d Padilla told The Oaklandside. \u201cSo what happens to the people in between who don\u2019t really make enough, but because they make a few dollars more, they can\u2019t get assistance?\u201d<\/p>\n

Padilla also received a $40,000 stipend, which she used to cover backpay for her staff. She hopes to apply for a facilities grant in the next year to fund the purchase of a play structure and the cost of fencing in her yard.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The American Institutes for Research, a social science research nonprofit, is evaluating the first year of Measure C implementation for the county and will present its report to the Alameda County Board of Supervisors in the fall, Spanos said.<\/p>\n

In the next year, according to the implementation plan, Measure C will support 2,400 more subsidized childcare spots and more facilities upgrades, and strengthen the workforce pipeline with investments in apprenticeship programs.\u00a0<\/p>\n

A centralized enrollment system for families is also in progress. With so many early childcare options \u2014 such as Head Start and Early Head Start, public preschool, various private preschools, and transitional kindergarten \u2014 plus programs to apply for subsidized childcare vouchers, families are often burdened with navigating multiple dozens of platforms to access care.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Clarissa Doutherd, the executive director of Parent Voices Oakland, which campaigned in support of Measure C, said at one point she had to fill out 12 different applications for her children. She said the process can feel dehumanizing.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s a part that is incredibly meaningful for me personally \u2014 being treated with dignity and not just being treated like a number, and having systems function in a way where I\u2019m not constantly worried about going through a 12-part process just to sign up and get services,\u201d Doutherd said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

A $25 minimum wage<\/p>\n

In its second year of disbursing funds, another crucial part of the Measure C plan will begin to take shape: a $25-an-hour wage floor for workers. The childcare industry is a low-paid field that relies heavily on the labor of women of color and immigrants<\/a>: In 2022, the median hourly wage in California for early childhood education workers was $15.85, according to the Berkeley Center for the Study of Childcare Employment, roughly what someone could earn working in fast food.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The idea, Spanos said, is to use Measure C funds to cover the gap between existing pay rates and the $25-an-hour rate.\u00a0 \u201cSo if at a site their employee is getting paid $17 an hour, there\u2019s going to be a wage differential applied to bring that employee up to $25 an hour,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

At St. Vincent\u2019s Day Home, an early childcare facility that opened in West Oakland in 1911, teaching and program staff each received a $1,000 stipend from the $100,000 grant the center received. Measure C funding also helped the center to purchase supplies for classrooms, provide professional development for staff, and supply diapers and wipes to families, executive director Alexandra Hilario said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The organization established its own wage floor this year for its lowest paid workers, bringing annual salaries up to $70,117, Hilario told The Oaklandside. Before this, many staff had to take second jobs to cover their bills. The increased pay and additional stability brought by Measure C investments will mean better outcomes for children, she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIf agencies are able to use these funds to better support children, to better support our staff and have better facilities for our children, it will have a huge impact on the quality of services,\u201d Hilario said. \u201cIf children receive higher quality education, it pays tenfold down the road because they are less likely to go to prison, more likely to go to college, become higher earners and have more social emotional development.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Brown said while the $40,000 emergency grant, which came in a lump sum, was extremely helpful, she\u2019s looking forward to the wage subsidies as a more sustainable investment in the county\u2019s childcare workers.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cA decent amount of the money we make as providers goes back into our business \u2014 home maintenance, food, utilities,\u201d Brown said. \u201cWe want longevity in income, not just a temporary fix.\u201d<\/p>\n

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