PHOENIX (AP) — For parents who need to work but can't afford the steep cost of child care, federally funded scholarships can be a lifeline. Delivered through state child care assistance programs, the scholarships can mean the difference between a parent working full time — or not at all.
But qualified families increasingly are being turned away, thanks to the rising costs of child care and the end of pandemic-era funds, and some families that had scholarships have seen them end. In three states — Arizona, Colorado and Texas — parents who apply face long waitlists. Other states, including Nevada and Oklahoma, have increased copayments for parents or have said they will serve fewer children, according to the advocacy group Child Care Aware of America. In Idaho, enrollment was paused for part of last year.
Last week, the Trump administration laid off some employees who helped states implement child care assistance. It's left advocates worried about the future of federal child care programs.
“What it means is that ultimately child care will become less safe, it’s going to become more expensive, and it’s going to become harder to find,” said Ruth Friedman, who was the director of the Office of Child Care under former President Joe Biden.
As part of Trump's sweeping cuts to the federal government, the administration eliminated jobs in the Office of Child Care, which oversees federal child care subsidies and ensure states are enforcing safety standards.
All staff in five of the 10 regional offices were cut, along with more in the office’s headquarters in Washington. They included staff who upheld federal safety requirements for child care providers and ensured subsidies were being used effectively. They worked with states to enforce requirements to run background checks on child care employees. They also safeguarded programs from waste and fraud.
During the pandemic, Congress approved record spending to boost the child care industry, recognizing its importance to restarting the economy. States received $24 billion to help child care providers boost wages, buy masks and air purifiers and train staff, plus an extra $15 billion for child care assistance scholarships.
That money expired in September. Congress declined to extend it, despite a push from Biden and child care advocates. Since then, some states have attempted to continue programs with their own taxpayers' money. But many, such as Arizona, have ended special pandemic-era programs, like those that helped teachers pay for child care. Now, Arizona parents who apply for basic child care assistance are put on waitlists — with no clear end in sight.
“There’s a much bigger need than there are funds,” said Kim Kofron of the Texas-based advocacy group Children at Risk. “We know all of these families are willing to work.”
In Phoenix, child care worker Janeth Ibarra would have paid nothing last year for care for her twin boys, because she would have received a special scholarship for those in her field. This year, her income qualifies her for regular state child care assistance. But because the state ran low on money for the program, she was on a waitlist earlier this year.
As it stands, Ibarra, 22, earns $16.50 an hour and is paying more than $1,200 a month for child care, after a steep discount from her employer.
“Even with overtime, it’s barely survivable,” Ibarra said. At the end of last year, Ibarra had to spend the last of her savings on special formula for one of her sons, a purchase not covered by her food assistance benefits. She tried to breastfeed more to save money.
In Idaho, where lawmakers in 2023 rejected pandemic aid for child care, the state stopped accepting applications for its child care assistance program. When the applications resumed, the state tightened income restrictions. Now, the only families who qualify earn less than 130% of the federal poverty line, or $41,795 for a family of four. Before, a family of four could earn up to $56,000 and still receive a scholarship.
In Colorado, a dozen counties stopped accepting new applications for the state's child care assistance program because they ran out of money, The Colorado Sun reported.
Trump has been vague on his plans to make child care more affordable. He said during his campaign that he believed tariffs would rake in “trillions of dollars.” Child care, he added, is, “relatively speaking, not very expensive compared to the kind of numbers we’ll be taking in.”
Economists, though, have warned tariffs could cause prices for other household goods to skyrocket, squeezing family budgets, and it’s unlikely there would be much money left over for the government to spend if Trump successfully implements steep tax cuts. Advocates are concerned child care funding could be cut as the president seeks to shrink the federal government.
For states trying to maintain child care assistance scholarships, the costs of running the programs have risen. Because many child care providers operate in the margins, the Biden administration increased the amount they receive when they take scholarship students.
It's all evidence the problems that vex the child care industry have not necessarily abated with the pandemic, said Karen Schulman, senior director of child care policy at the National Women’s Law Center.
“The crisis was going on long before COVID,” Schulman said, citing the unaffordability of care for many families, along with the low pay of the child care workforce.
Even as providers struggle to make a profit, child care is prohibitively expensive for many families. In a study of 2022 child care prices, the Labor Department found the median cost of care for an infant in a center was more than $15,600 in large counties — higher than the median rent in many places.
When Brooklyn Newman divorced her husband, she moved with her two boys, now 2 and 4, into a trailer while she got back on her feet. The Phoenix mother was eager to send her older boy to preschool so he could have structure as the family weathered the split. But she could not afford tuition for her younger son until the preschool gave her a scholarship funded by pandemic aid.
With both boys in school half-time, Newman could put in more hours at her job as a freelance business analyst. But when the scholarship ended, she had to pay out of pocket — adding $1,000 a month to her preschool tuition. She made a painful trade-off: She juggled working in the evening while watching her children at home — sacrificing quality time with them so she can earn enough money to continue to send them to preschool.
“I’m constantly behind a computer, you know, giving everything I can,” Brooklyn said earlier this year, her voice tightening with emotion. Occasionally, her sons will hide her computer mouse to keep her from working.
But she can see growth from their time in preschool — in their language, in their confidence, in their relationships with teachers and classmates. “You’re watching them grow. It’s just the best feeling. And that’s why I do everything I can to have them there.”
The Associated Press’ education coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.
FILE - Rylee Monn plays with children in her class at a child care center in Lexington, Ky., March 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Dylan Lovan, File)
FILE - Delaney Griffin, center, plays with toddlers at the child care center where she works, March 13, 2024, in Lexington, Ky. (AP Photo/Dylan Lovan, File)
U.S. President Donald Trump says Iran has proposed negotiations after his threat to strike the Islamic Republic as an ongoing crackdown on demonstrators has led to hundreds of deaths.
Trump said late Sunday that his administration was in talks to set up a meeting with Tehran, but cautioned that he may have to act first as reports mount of increasing deaths and the government continues to arrest protesters.
“The meeting is being set up, but we may have to act because of what’s happening before the meeting. But a meeting is being set up. Iran called, they want to negotiate,” Trump told reporters on Air Force One on Sunday night.
Iran did not acknowledge Trump’s comments immediately. It has previously warned the U.S. military and Israel would be “legitimate targets” if America uses force to protect demonstrators.
The U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency, which has accurately reported on past unrest in Iran, gave the death toll. It relies on supporters in Iran cross checking information. It said at least 544 people have been killed so far, including 496 protesters and 48 people from the security forces. It said more than 10,600 people also have been detained over the two weeks of protests.
With the internet down in Iran and phone lines cut off, gauging the demonstrations from abroad has grown more difficult. Iran’s government has not offered overall casualty figures.
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A witness told the AP that the streets of Tehran empty at the sunset call to prayers each night.
Part of that stems from the fear of getting caught in the crackdown. Police sent the public a text message that warned: “Given the presence of terrorist groups and armed individuals in some gatherings last night and their plans to cause death, and the firm decision to not tolerate any appeasement and to deal decisively with the rioters, families are strongly advised to take care of their youth and teenagers.”
Another text, addressed “Dear parents,” which claimed to come from the intelligence arm of the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, also directly warned people not to take part in demonstrations.
The witness spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity due to the ongoing crackdown.
—- By Jon Gambrell in Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Iran drew tens of thousands of pro-government demonstrators to the streets Monday in a show of power after nationwide protests challenging the country’s theocracy.
Iranian state television showed images of demonstrators thronging Tehran toward Enghelab Square in the capital.
It called the demonstration an “Iranian uprising against American-Zionist terrorism,” without addressing the underlying anger in the country over the nation’s ailing economy. That sparked the protests over two weeks ago.
State television aired images of such demonstrations around the country, trying to signal it had overcome the protests, as claimed by Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi earlier in the day.
China says it opposes the use of force in international relations and expressed hope the Iranian government and people are “able to overcome the current difficulties and maintain national stability.”
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said Monday that Beijing “always opposes interference in other countries’ internal affairs, maintains that the sovereignty and security of all countries should be fully protected under international law, and opposes the use or threat of use of force in international relations.”
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz condemned “in the strongest terms the violence that the leadership in Iran is directing against its own people.”
He said it was a sign of weakness rather than strength, adding that “this violence must end.”
Merz said during a visit to India that the demonstrators deserve “the greatest respect” for the courage with which “they are resisting the disproportional, brutal violence of Iranian security forces.”
He said: “I call on the Iranian leadership to protect its population rather than threatening it.”
Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman on Monday suggested that a channel remained open with the United States.
Esmail Baghaei made the comment during a news conference in Tehran.
“It is open and whenever needed, through that channel, the necessary messages are exchanged,” he said.
However, Baghaei said such talks needed to be “based on the acceptance of mutual interests and concerns, not a negotiation that is one-sided, unilateral and based on dictation.”
The semiofficial Fars news agency in Iran, which is close to the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, on Monday began calling out Iranian celebrities and leaders on social media who have expressed support for the protests over the past two weeks, especially before the internet was shut down.
The threat comes as writers and other cultural leaders were targeted even before protests. The news agency highlighted specific celebrities who posted in solidarity with the protesters and scolded them for not condemning vandalism and destruction to public property or the deaths of security forces killed during clashes. The news agency accused those celebrities and leaders of inciting riots by expressing their support.
Canada said it “stands with the brave people of Iran” in a statement on social media that strongly condemned the killing of protesters during widespread protests that have rocked the country over the past two weeks.
“The Iranian regime must halt its horrific repression and intimidation and respect the human rights of its citizens,” Canada’s government said on Monday.
Iran’s foreign minister claimed Monday that “the situation has come under total control” after a bloody crackdown on nationwide protests in the country.
Abbas Araghchi offered no evidence for his claim.
Araghchi spoke to foreign diplomats in Tehran. The Qatar-funded Al Jazeera satellite news network, which has been allowed to work despite the internet being cut off in the country, carried his remarks.
Iran’s foreign minister alleged Monday that nationwide protests in his nation “turned violent and bloody to give an excuse” for U.S. President Donald Trump to intervene.
Abbas Araghchi offered no evidence for his claim, which comes after over 500 have been reported killed by activists -- the vast majority coming from demonstrators.
Araghchi spoke to foreign diplomats in Tehran. The Qatar-funded Al Jazeera satellite news network, which has been allowed to work despite the internet being cut off in the country, carried his remarks.
Iran has summoned the British ambassador over protesters twice taking down the Iranian flag at their embassy in London.
Iranian state television also said Monday that it complained about “certain terrorist organization that, under the guise of media, spread lies and promote violence and terrorism.” The United Kingdom is home to offices of the BBC’s Persian service and Iran International, both which long have been targeted by Iran.
A huge crowd of demonstrators, some waving the flag of Iran, gathered Sunday afternoon along Veteran Avenue in LA’s Westwood neighborhood to protest against the Iranian government. Police eventually issued a dispersal order, and by early evening only about a hundred protesters were still in the area, ABC7 reported.
Los Angeles is home to the largest Iranian community outside of Iran.
Los Angeles police responded Sunday after somebody drove a U-Haul box truck down a street crowded with the the demonstrators, causing protesters to scramble out of the way and then run after the speeding vehicle to try to attack the driver. A police statement said one person was hit by the truck but nobody was seriously hurt.
The driver, a man who was not identified, was detained “pending further investigation,” police said in a statement Sunday evening.
Shiite Muslims hold placards and chant slogans during a protest against the U.S. and show solidarity with Iran in Lahore, Pakistan, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/K.M. Chaudary)
Activists carrying a photograph of Reza Pahlavi take part in a rally supporting protesters in Iran at Lafayette Park, across from the White House, in Washington, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)
Activists take part in a rally supporting protesters in Iran at Lafayette Park, across from the White House in Washington, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)
Protesters burn the Iranian national flag during a rally in support of the nationwide mass demonstrations in Iran against the government in Paris, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)
