The status of child care in Utah, post 2025 legislative session

SALT LAKE CITY — Not long before the end of the 2025 legislative session, Utah lawmakers killed a bill that would have converted empty, unused government buildings into new child care centers.

The bill is SB189, sponsored by Sen. Luz Escamilla, D-Salt Lake City, and according to Holly Richardson, editor of Utah Policy, this is the second year such a bill was proposed and failed to pass.

“One representative said we should be either selling off these buildings, or we should use them for state-run purposes and we’re not in the business of daycare. And another one said this might decrease the availability of kids for in-home day care providers.”

What if the bill passed?

“They actually would work with private child care providers and they would charge market rate rent for the space, actually. But they would have allocated 50% of the spots for children of state workers and then for members of the military or the National Guard,” Richardson said.

The reason for this is because there’s not enough child care services in the state, which Richardson said forces people to put their kids on waitlists as soon as they find out about the pregnancy.

“Stuff like that where you just say, “Okay, I’m going to be home for the first couple of years, but I’ve got to get my child on the list for daycare because there’s just not enough providers in the state.'”

What about child care affordability?

According to BabyCenter, the national average cost of a baby’s first year of child care is a little over $10,000. That’s just one portion of a long list of other expenses for that first year, such as diapers, a stroller, and food.

“Even if you assume that everybody breastfeeds, it includes some formula because most people use a little bit of formula to supplement. And then by the time the baby’s a year old, you’re also feeding it some solid food,” said Lois Collins, a reporter for the Deseret News.

While many people are worried about the shrinking fertility, Collins said it’s important to start by making it easier for families to raise kids.

“Around the world there are a lot of places that are trying to do a lot of things like subsidized child care to help families be able to afford to have kids because … generally kids are a good for the world. They build the safety net, they build the future, they boost the economy, they drive innovation, and they buy your house when you’re old and you want to retire and nobody’s there to cash out,” Collins said. “… If fertility shrinks, then the population, the economy, all of that shrinks, too.”

Related:

• Is the state auditor being pushed out of the Utah Capitol?
• Hill Air Force Base families warned of possible child care disruptions
• Utah Senate sends free school lunch bill to governor