In the last legislative session, CGMC helped secure $5 million for the DEED Child Care Grant Program. This week, DEED announced the first 14 grant recipients for the 2022-23 biennium, totaling almost $2.5 million in funding that is expected to create 2,300 new child care slots. The majority of the funds—69%—will fund projects in Greater Minnesota.
In announcing the grants, DEED Commissioner Steve Grove said, “Access to quality child care is a crisis in Minnesota that is holding our workforce back. These grants, the largest we’ve ever issued, will make a difference to hundreds of families across our state at a critical moment in Minnesota’s economic growth.”
Five of the 14 grants went to projects in CGMC communities, including:
- City of Warren: $210,000
- Nobles County Community Service Agency in Worthington: $75,000
- Greater Bemidji, Inc: $140,000
- Morris Health Services: $150,000
- Brainerd Family YMCA: $140,000
Additional grants were made to three of the Minnesota Initiative Foundations that serve Greater Minnesota, including:
- Northland Foundation: $240,000
- Northwest Minnesota Foundation: $224,000
- West Central Initiative: $100,000
These grants are the first half of the funding for the program for the biennium. An RFP for the second half will come out before June 2022 for grants to be awarded early in the next fiscal year, which begins July 1, 2022. If your community, or providers in your community, are interested in applying for a grant in the second round and want to learn more about eligibility, please contact CGMC lobbyist Scott McMahon at shmcmahon@flaherty-hood.com.
