Recent U.S. child care and family legislation in comparative perspective

This article reviews the history and content of recently passed U.S. child care and family legislation. This legislation is compared to the child care and family policies of four European nations in terms of five major policy objectives: (a) increasing supply, (b) supporting maternal employment, (c) easing the burdens of child rearing, (d) permitting parental choice, and (e) raising the quality of programs. All four European nations have been concerned with promoting childbearing and assisting parents to balance work and family responsibilities. They have also increased national responsibility for the care and education of children ages 3-5 and employer responsibility for parental leave. In contrast to the state-run systems in France, the United States has a market-based system with middle- and upper-income parents making the choices and being reimbursed by the state for part of those expenses. Low-income parents receive targeted subsidies. Recent parental leave legislation brings the United States only slightly closer to Europe because the leave is unpaid.