Quality housing and child care are essential to healthy child development, but, as multiple studies have shown, high costs of both burden millions of families nationwide. Updates to Head Start program standards from the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) will now make it easier to access Head Start for families struggling to cover living and child care expenses.
In a new rule effective October 2024, Head Start agencies can now “make an adjustment to a family’s gross income calculation for the purposes of determining eligibility in order to account for excessive housing costs.” (§ 1302.12)(i)(1)(ii)). This means that many families whose incomes marginally exceed the federal poverty line, which sat at $31,200 for a family of four in 2024, may now be able to access Head Start if they are spending a significant portion of their income on housing.
In early 2024, LIIF submitted a comment letter supporting these changes. This letter details the ways Head Start could better serve young families who may not fall immediately within eligibility criteria but be uniquely cost burdened nonetheless. By increasing access to programs, the Administration is making it easier for more families to find safe, quality places for their children to learn and grow — and for families to take advantage of other parenting and economic mobility supports offered by the Head Start model.
In addition to important income-eligibility updates, the Aug. 21 publication of revisions to the Head Start Program Performance Standards (HSPPS) also delineates many changes related to improving the quality of services for Head Start staff and families. Among these are important enhancements to Head Start staff pay and benefits, thereby ensuring that programs serving the lowest-income families have a qualified and stable workforce.
Supporting low-income families requires policies that can evolve and adapt to address root causes of poverty. ACF’s updates to the Head Start performance standards make clear the unique connection between housing and child care — and will help improve outcomes for countless families and children throughout the country.
Head Start agencies can now ‘make an adjustment to a family’s gross income calculation for the purposes of determining eligibility in order to account for excessive housing costs.’