AUSTIN, Texas — Because of Austin’s growth, the city has a shortage of child care facilities. But owners often face several obstacles when it comes to opening.
City leaders have found the biggest hurdle when opening a child care center is the City's regulations and fees, so they could change the land definition code to make it easier for people to open and expand child care centers.
On Tuesday night, the City's planning commission signed off some changes to send to the city council.
One of the changes involves increasing the number of kids allowed to be enrolled at each facility. Another would change how some facilities are categorized. Under the current land use definition, child care centers are considered "day care services."
The proposed amendment creates two different types of facilities – one for kids under 18 and another for people over 18.
The City could also launch a grant program to help operators pay for city fees.
The full council is set to consider these changes at the meeting on Oct. 19.
Travis County is the most expensive county in Texas to raise a child, according to the U.S. Labor Department's Women's Bureau. Data showed the average parent in the county paid $11,705 for child care in 2022.
On Saturday, funding from the 2021 American Rescue Plan Act will expire, which will impact child care providers.
Boomtown is KVUE's series covering the explosive growth in Central Texas. For more Boomtown stories, head to KVUE.com/Boomtown.