# Whatcom County Council Public Works & Health Committee **January 28, 2025 — Building Childcare Capacity in Whatcom County** --- ## Meeting Overview The Whatcom County Council's Public Works & Health Committee convened for a brief but substantive meeting on Tuesday morning, January 28, 2025, in the hybrid format that has become standard practice. Committee Chair Jon Scanlon presided over the session, joined by committee members Mark Stremler (participating online) and Ben Elenbaas. Several other council members attended as observers, including Barry Buchanan, Todd Donovan, and Kaylee Galloway. What distinguished this meeting was its laser focus on a single critical issue facing Whatcom County families: childcare capacity. Both agenda items centered on different aspects of the county's efforts to expand access to quality childcare through the Healthy Children's Fund and strategic partnerships. The presentations revealed both the scope of the challenge—with over 4,000 children needing care but only about 4,000 licensed slots available—and the innovative approaches being deployed to address it. The meeting served as both an informational briefing and a moment of accountability, as elected officials checked in on the progress of major investments and asked pointed questions about measurable outcomes and systemic barriers that county policy might need to address. ## The Center for Retention and Expansion of Childcare The first substantive discussion focused on the Center for Retention and Expansion of Childcare (CRECC), a partnership between Whatcom County and the Opportunity Council that has evolved significantly since its COVID-era origins. Ann Beck, the county's Health and Community Services Manager, introduced the presentation but deferred to Lori Saling, Assistant Director of Early Learning and Family Services at Opportunity Council, who joined the meeting online. Saling painted a stark picture of the childcare landscape in Whatcom County. Drawing from June 2024 data from Childcare Aware of Washington, she reported that 72 to 78 percent of children under six have both parents working—translating to roughly 8,000 families among the county's 10,879 children under five who need some form of care while their parents work. Yet the county's licensed childcare capacity sits at just 3,972 slots, creating a gap of over 4,000 children. "While not all of those children might need a formal childcare setting, there's a large number of children that do need childcare so families can, parents can work to support their families," Saling explained, emphasizing the economic imperative beyond family needs. "So the work that CRECC is doing to meet that capacity and need, not just for our families, but for our local economy. So businesses are able to have employees that do not have a childcare issue so they can come to work and help support our local economy." CRECC's approach is comprehensive, addressing the multiple barriers that prevent new childcare facilities from opening or existing ones from expanding. The organization provides feasibility assessments for potential locations, helps navigate state licensing requirements, assists with local permitting processes, and offers business coaching to ensure financial sustainability. They also work directly with early learning coaches to maintain quality standards and help providers enroll families in state subsidy programs. One of CRECC's more innovative initiatives involves partnering directly with employers to develop childcare solutions for their workers—either through voucher systems or by holding specific slots for employees at local providers. The discussion took a practical turn when Chair Scanlon asked about regulatory barriers: "Is there anything we're seeing consistently popping up across code and permitting for childcare businesses that Council should look at?" Saling's response highlighted both past successes and ongoing challenges. She described a significant victory from a few years earlier when CRECC worked with the county to align local regulations with state licensing standards. Previously, county code limited family childcare homes to six children while state licensing allowed twelve—a discrepancy that prevented providers from operating at full capacity. "There was an issue of the licensor was not going to license this childcare, because the county code was you can only have six children, whereas the state licensing is you can have 12 children," Saling recounted. "And so we actually worked with the county to change that so that it's the same as what DCYF requires in licensing that you can have 12 children in a family childcare." Other barriers prove more challenging. In rural areas, septic system requirements can be particularly costly when small family operations need to upgrade to commercial-grade systems. Fence height regulations sometimes conflict between local zoning requirements and childcare licensing standards. Parking minimums, though recently addressed by the City of Bellingham, can still pose challenges in some jurisdictions. Council Member Barry Buchanan, who had worked on the family childcare capacity issue during his tenure, expressed gratitude for the code changes: "I just want to thank you for number one for your work. But especially working on that code. I worked on that a little bit a few years ago as well. And I'm really thankful we got that fixed." The exchange underscored the importance of ongoing collaboration between childcare advocates and local government. As Saling noted, "These are the types of partnerships we have to have so that we can make this happen for our community." ## Healthy Children's Fund Progress Report The second presentation provided a comprehensive update on the Healthy Children's Fund, delivered by Sarah Simpson, supervisor for Children's and Family Programs at Whatcom County Health and Community Services. Simpson's presentation demonstrated how the fund has matured from concept to active implementation, with multiple streams of work proceeding simultaneously. The subsidy program, designed to help working families afford childcare, has reached a crucial milestone with the completion of a resolution authorizing the county to move forward. Simpson outlined an aggressive timeline for getting funds to families: the request for proposal is in final stages of internal review, will include a six-week application period, and aims for a contract start date no later than August 7th. "We worked with both our internal contracts team, legal, finance and other folks to come up with an appropriate timeline to get this contract out and into the world so we can get those funds to families and providers as quickly as possible," Simpson explained. The program faces some uncertainty due to state budget discussions. Washington State had planned to increase its subsidy eligibility from 60 to 75 percent of state median income, but that remains in flux. Regardless, Simpson confirmed the county's commitment to maintaining its more generous approach: "The direction we've been hearing from all of you and the child and family wellbeing task force as well as the implementation team is that we would still like to see what it would cost us to continue to have our subsidy go up to 85% of the state median income." The implementation team has become a significant force in its own right, meeting weekly for two-hour sessions over three to four months. The group includes parents, childcare providers, task force members, and experts in early childhood services. Their current focus is developing the 2025-26 implementation plan, due to council by the end of March. Simpson described their approach as strategic simplification—not making the work less complex, but focusing resources more effectively: "The concept of maple syrup, right, making maple syrup, we're boiling down the things that are really, really important and making sure that we're funding really key elements that are going to bolster the early learning and care landscape here in Whatcom County." One of the most innovative aspects of the county's approach is its partnership with Stanford University for rapid community surveys. The county received a competitive grant that provides regular data collection about family experiences, needs, and program utilization—work that would cost thousands of dollars if conducted locally. The first survey, conducted in November and December, generated over 350 completed responses from residents across all cities in the county, with participation rates roughly matching population distribution. The survey included both quantitative questions about childcare usage and subsidy experiences, and qualitative questions about what's working for families. "What I was excited about is 30% of the respondents of that 350 actually completed all of our narrative questions," Simpson noted. "And one of those narrative questions is like, what is helping you and your family the most right now. So we want to know what's working for families and where we can continue to hone in our resources." ## Questions About Metrics and Implementation Council Member Todd Donovan pressed for more specificity about outcomes and implementation patterns. Looking at a fund distribution chart in the meeting packet, he noticed that certain types of services—particularly doula support—seemed to move from planning to execution much faster than childcare initiatives. "It must be easier to get contracts for doulas than for childcare because we got like nine contracts we could execute for doulas," Donovan observed. "I guess what in future presentations—it kind of comes back to something we talked about earlier, like, how do we measure the impact? Like, how do we know there are more services being utilized?" Simpson and Beck provided practical explanations for the discrepancies. Many of the completed contracts were for services under $40,000, allowing them to move through the approval process more quickly. Additionally, public health services like doula support build on existing contracting relationships and systems, while early learning represents newer territory for the county. "Services such as the doulas or the behavioral mental health contracts are things that are public health benefits that we have habits and systems around contracting," Simpson explained. "And so early learning here is something new." The discussion revealed the learning curve inherent in launching major new programs. As the county develops expertise and processes for childcare-related contracting, implementation should accelerate. Simpson pointed to several upcoming childcare initiatives in development, including drop-in care programs and capital projects. Donovan's questions about measuring impact reflected broader accountability concerns that will likely intensify as the Healthy Children's Fund scales up. The rapid survey data, expected in mid-February, should provide some answers about whether services are reaching intended beneficiaries and meeting community needs. ## Looking Ahead The meeting concluded with discussion of upcoming timelines and deliverables. The implementation plan remains on track for completion by the end of March, with opportunities for public review in early March. The second rapid survey is planned for launch in early March as well, providing ongoing feedback loops about program effectiveness. Both presentations highlighted the complexity of expanding childcare capacity—requiring coordination across licensing agencies, local permitting authorities, financial institutions, employers, and families themselves. Yet they also demonstrated momentum building around innovative approaches that could serve as models for other communities facing similar challenges. As the meeting adjourned early at 11:12 a.m., Chair Scanlon noted the efficiency gain would allow the Planning and Development Committee to begin ahead of schedule—a small example of the kind of systemic optimization that characterizes the county's approach to addressing the childcare crisis. The presentations left committee members with a clear picture of substantial progress on multiple fronts, but also with pointed questions about measurement, accountability, and the speed of implementation that will likely shape future oversight of these critical family support programs.