Financing Child Care in the United States - Ewing Marion Kauffman ...

PUBLIC–PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS COMMUNITY AND PUBLIC SECTOR PARTNERSHIPS
SMART START (NORTH CAROLINA)
DESCRIPTION
Smart Start is a comprehensive initiative designed to
make early childhood education and support services
available to every child under 6 years of age whose family
needs and wants those services. The initiative also seeks
to ensure that early childhood programs and family
services meet high quality standards and performance
measures. The overall goal of Smart Start is to ensure
that every child begins school healthy and ready to
succeed.
WHEN ESTABLISHED
Smart Start was proposed by Governor James Hunt (D)
and passed by the General Assembly in 1993.
ANNUAL AMOUNT
In FY1998–99, the state legislature appropriated a total
of $220 million. Amendments passed in 1995 require the
North Carolina Partnership for Children (the Smart Start
administrator) and local partnerships to match 10 percent
of the annual Smart Start appropriation. (No more than
half of this match may be in–kind donations.) In 1999,
Governor Hunt and local partnerships raised $19 million
in contributions from the corporate sector. Since 1994,
Smart Start has raised almost $50 million in matching
cash and in–kind contributions.
SERVICES FUNDED
While Smart Start funds may be used for a diverse array
of services, most of the funds have been directed to
providing early childhood care and education,
immunizations and children’s health services, and family
support services for children of low– and
moderate–income families. Many counties have used
Smart Start funds to reduce waiting lists for subsidized
child care as well as to raise income eligibility levels
and/or child care provider reimbursement rates. The
WAGE$ Project, which provides salary support, grew out
of Smart Start, and is profiled separately on page 66. In
addition, a statewide health insurance program emerged
from Smart Start, which is profiled on page 69.
HOW FUNDS DISTRIBUTED
The state awards Smart Start funds to counties through a
competitive grant application process. To qualify, local
applicants are required to establish private, nonprofit
partnership boards to govern and coordinate local
programs. The local partnerships must include families,
educators, nonprofits, service providers, community
groups, religious and business leaders and county and
municipal officials, and they must develop a plan for
collaborative child and family development services in
their area. Smart Start funds are made available to help
support implementation of the plan. At present, 83 local
partnerships covering all 100 counties are participating in
the initiative.
The Smart Start legislation established a state–level,
private, nonprofit entity — the North Carolina Partnership
for Children — exclusively to oversee the activities of local
Smart Start initiatives. The partnership has established
statewide goals and outcomes that serve as a framework
for the local partnerships. Additionally, it offers technical
assistance to local partnerships and helps to raise
matching funds. Funds flow to the counties via contracts
with the North Carolina Partnership for Children.
POPULATION SERVED
All children from birth through age 5, their families and
communities are potential beneficiaries of Smart Start
funds.
STRATEGIC CONSIDERATIONS
• From its inception, Smart Start has had a significant
influence on overall child care policy in the state. For
example, the Smart Start bill was packaged with, and
helped to pass, a number of child care system reforms
that a bipartisan legislative commission had been
working on for several years. These included legislation
to improve staff–to–child ratios in child care settings,
increase child care subsidy funds and increase the
state child care tax credit for lower–income families.
This year, North Carolina is implementing a five–star
child care rating system to assist consumers.
• Smart Start was a centerpiece of Governor Hunt’s
campaign and clearly stressed that “parents have the
primary duty to raise, educate and transmit values to
young preschool children.” The initiative seeks to help
parents fulfill this role by empowering families and
supporting the communities in which they live. Every
aspect of its implementation has been carefully
audited, and lengthy legislative battles have been
fought over funds for the initiative. These battles have
intensified over time; candidates have won and lost
because of their positions on Smart Start.
• Smart Start funds are not limited to poor families who
need child care. Local initiatives can address issues
that affect all socioeconomic levels, and may include
family support services such as parenting education,
child development, health care, literacy and others.
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