Iowa-based businesses interested in expanding child care options for employees can apply for the state’s recently re-opened Child Care Business Incentive (CCBI) Grant, Gov. Kim Reynolds announced last week.
First launched in 2022, the CCBI Grant helps businesses and employer consortiums cover the costs of any infrastructure required to build child care centers. The grant can cover a new center built onsite at a business or a new local child care center built in Iowa communities.
“While we’ve made great progress in supporting our labor force coming out of the pandemic, challenges remain, and it’s important to recognize the connection between child care and a successful workforce,” the governor said in a news release Wednesday, Nov. 20.
The CCBI grant is now opened for these applicants:
- Current awardees of the Child Care Business Incentive Grant 1.0 (first awarded in 2022). All previous awardees with active projects will receive an Additional Fund Request form and instructions to apply.
- A Child Care Business Incentive Grant 2.0 is available for employers that did not previously receive CCBI grant funds. A new notice of funding document and application process is available on iowagrants.gov.
“We encourage any eligible employer to apply for this unique opportunity that can jumpstart the child care options that support their employees and allow their businesses to grow,” Ms. Reynolds added.
The grants are available through Iowa Workforce Development’s Future Ready Iowa program. CCBI grants are now open at iowagrants.gov. Deadline for applications is 2 p.m., Monday, Dec. 23. For information and instructions on applying, visit this link.
2.0 grant reaches more
The 2.0 grant is open to any Iowa business or entity that pays W-2 wages to a minimum of 75 full-time employees and is not already in the child care business. Awards are administered as a reimbursement only and require a 50/50 private match.
Grant funds provided to employers can be used to support the expansion or new construction of child care and/or day care facilities for employees. The employer can provide child care in house or partner with a local child care provider.
“As a state, our priority remains supporting businesses and their ability to recruit and retain the workers they need to be successful,” Beth Townsend, Iowa Workforce Development’s executive director, said in the release. “This grant is one tool that focuses on the critically important area of child care and shows how Iowa can get creative on the solutions that help keep our workforce healthy and thriving.”
During a Vision to Vitality business event last week in the Quad Cities, area employers and workforce leaders noted the ongoing challenge workers face in securing child care. The event was presented by the Iowa Business Council. It was hosted by Eastern Iowa Community Colleges’ Urban Campus in downtown Davenport.
Who gets priority?
Priority funding will be given to applicants who are:
- Located in an Iowa county classified as a high-demand area for child care (view map). Counties with a greater demand for child care will receive additional priority.
- Planning to utilize funding to increase the capacity of the child care center by creating additional slots across multiple age groups. Note: Applicants requesting additional funding to maintain current slots will not receive priority.
- Planning to build onsite child care centers.
- Not recipients of the previous Child Care Challenge or Investing in Iowa’s Child Care (IICC) funding offered in 2021 and 2022. Note: This will not exclude applicants who may have partnered with an existing child care facility and may have already received Child Care Challenge or Investing in Iowa’s Child Care funding – provided there is direct linkage between providing additional slots to the employer’s employees.
The grants will be provided through American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds. There will be a webinar on the grants at 11:30 a.m., Tuesday, Dec. 3. Register here.
For a list of all requirements and a Notice of Funding Opportunity, visit Iowa Workforce Development’s Child Care grants page. For more information or questions, contact Patrick Rice at [email protected].
