ORS 329A.720 Findings

Early educational investments are severely underfunded.

There is a shortage of affordable and accessible child care in this state.

Early learning and care providers have limited finances to facilitate expansion of a robust child care infrastructure.

High-quality early child care investment promotes regional economic growth by increasing the number of jobs available within the child care and construction workforce sectors and by providing consistent, accessible and reliable care that is necessary to allow parents to participate in the labor force.

Quality early learning and care facilities that are developmentally appropriate, inclusive of children with disabilities, culturally relevant and responsive and environmentally healthy support child brain development and the well-being of children and early learning and child care staff.

Sustained public investment and technical assistance are necessary to overcome constraints and incentivize the development and expansion of early learning and care resources in this state.

The purpose of ORS 329A.720 to 329A.732 is to provide financial assistance to eligible applicants for activities that promote increased early learning and care capacity across the state, in an amount determined on a case-by-case basis by the Oregon Business Development Department.