Approved budget creates new milestone for families and early childhood providers in Illinois

Approved budget creates new milestone for families and early childhood providers in Illinois

The 104th General Assembly approved a FY2027 budget for the Illinois Department of Early Childhood (IDEC). The GA appropriated $4.4 billion for early childhood education and care as IDEC prepares for the first year of administrating programs and services starting July 1, 2026. This is an important milestone in the work that has been underway for several years as advocates, lawmakers, and stakeholders work together to streamline early childhood for the state. Their efforts aim to make programs and services simpler, fairer, and more effective for families with young children and providers.

Overall, the FY27 budget represent a 3.6% increase for early childhood in Illinois! The budget will help IDEC continue to maintain essential services for Illinois families with young children, bring structural changes to the state's early childhood education and care programs, and preserves Governor's commitment to early childhood programs and services.

The breakdown

General Revenue Funds (GRF)

IDEC will receive $2.084 billion from the General Revenue Fund, a slight decrease from the Governor's recommendation. Funding for day-to-day operations supports IDEC's launch and transition of staff from other departments.

For major programs, this means:

• Child Care Assistance Program (CCAP): An increase of $55 million to serve up to 155,000 children.
• Early Intervention: An increase of $15 million to maintain and strengthen services.
• Early Childhood Block Grant: Maintain funding to support preschool and prevention initiative programs.
• The maintenance of other key programs and services like Home Visting and Smart Start Workforce Grants.

Budget breakdown:

DEC is also preparing to share a breakdown for legislative bills, and their effective dates, that bring changes to early childhood in Illinois over the next several years. These changes will be shared out accordingly to ensure consistent transparency to providers for families and providers across the state.

FY2027 represent an historic moment for early childhood in Illinois --for the first time ever, there will be one agency leading the implementation of early childhood. We are excited about the year to come and look forward to partnering with parents, provides, the workforce and advocates to implement this historic budget and ensure Illinois is on the path to being the best state in the nation to raise a family with young children.

Thank you,

Teresa Ramos, Secretary

Illinois Department of Early Childhood