Across the country, Progressive organizations and politicians are pushing for a massive increase in government involvement in child care. Although increased government spending, programs, and regulation of child care often sounds beneficial to the average citizen, government intervention reduces child-care options while increasing costs and decreasing flexibility for families. There are better ways to help families find and pay for good child care – for instance, tax credits and deductions, and deregulating some aspects of child care. But what are the best ways to explain the upside of alternative policies to help families and the negative consequences of government intervention in child care? Independent Women’s Forum commissioned Evolving Strategies (ES) to conduct a national randomized-controlled trial with a sample of over 2,600 respondents to test the effectiveness of 4 different messages explaining why increased government involvement in child care is counterproductive and harmful to families. 

Child-Care Policies and Priorities by Independent Women's Forum