New Wisconsin survey shows lack of funding and staffing is keeping 33,000 children from receiving adequate child care

MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- New data is illuminating a statewide child care crisis that is impacting families, providers, and the entire economy.

A drastic lack of funding is causing staffing shortages that, in turn, are limiting how many families can get care.

A new survey from the state's Department of Children and Families shows nearly 60% of all providers are under capacity, primarily due to staffing shortages.

That includes the providers we visited in Milwaukee, who shared the stark realities they're struggling with.

Kahlila Fennell is the owner and program administrator at Humble Hearts Child Development Center in Milwaukee. She told us, "We aren't able to provide quality, affordable child care for families."

Fennell said without better funding from the state, Humble Hearts will have to close.

She said they're fighting two battles: on the one hand, they only have enough staff to operate at half capacity. On the other hand, the costs they have to charge are steep enough to keep many parents away.

"You have to decide whether you want to make groceries for the week or if you're able to provide tuition funding to early care centers like ourselves for your children."

It's a vicious cycle: fewer children in care limits revenue, which limits how many employees can be hired, which limits how many children can be accepted.

According to the state's most recent Child Care Supply and Demand Survey, 48,000 Wisconsin children are on waitlists for child care.

If providers could operate at full capacity, 33,000 of those children could be served.

Not operating at full capacity costs the state $1.1 billion in lost economic productivity, earnings, and revenue.

The Child Care Counts Program helped subsidize the cost, but when payments were recently cut in half, there were significant ripple effects.

One of them is providers are struggling to pay staff a livable wage.

Fennell said, "If a teacher is unable to make her shift because she found a better job at the local grocery store making more than she makes in the early care setting."

The average hourly pay for lead child care teachers is less than half the pay of an average Wisconsin worker.

Deborah Lee is a preschool teacher at another facility. She told us, "You're not getting enough pay. You're not. You really have to be passionate about what you do to stay in this field."

She's seen a lot of staff turnover as friends who don't have enough pay or benefits leave.

Lee said, "They stop looking at this as a serious career."

And Lee said even the ones that do stay, "they have to go on some type of public assistance for this type of particular job."

Still, she and many more educators are trying to persevere, for now.

Lee said, "Every child that crosses my path, I will not allow them to slip through the cracks."

Kahlila Fennell said Humble Hearts has had a waitlist ever since they opened two years ago, but they also have only ever had enough staff to operate below capacity.

She and Deborah Lee are urging lawmakers to increase the funding for providers in order to help boost staffing and lower the cost of care.