EVERETT — Snohomish County Council members approved an ordinance Wednesday to amend zoning laws and expedite the permitting process for child care centers in unincorporated areas.
It’s part of an effort from the council to encourage the opening of more centers across the county and bring relief to a struggling industry — an industry a 2022 Department of Commerce report said was “broken” because of exorbitant costs for families and a lack of revenue for providers.
A 2019 Department of Commerce report found over a quarter of parents surveyed had either quit their job or left school because of child care issues. On average, families in Snohomish County spend 15-35% of their annual income on child care, said the manager of the Snohomish County Early Learning Coalition, Debbie Carlsen, at a Tuesday county council meeting.
“That’s unacceptable, and that’s not normal either,” council member Jared Mead said Wednesday. “That’s the problem is we are abnormally expensive, abnormally inaccessible.”
The ordinance amends county regulations to shorten the application process for new day care centers and allows them in areas where they were previously prohibited. The council, which approved the ordinance unanimously, hopes the reduction of red tape can save some administrative costs for providers and allow them to open in more areas across the county.
But the problems with the child care industry go beyond just zoning and permits, local industry leaders said Tuesday.
“A lot of these things require being addressed at the state level, but I think one of the things we can do here locally is our permitting process,” council member Nate Nehring said Wednesday. “It’s a small step, but it’s a positive step in the right direction.”
Qualifications required to work at child care facilities in Washington vary based on the job position and the age of the children in the centers. Many positions require state certifications and higher education degrees which can take years to obtain. Prioritizing job experience as a more important factor could be a method of incentivising more people to join the industry, said Marci Volmer, the chief operating officer of Boys and Girls Clubs of Snohomish County.
“A lot of times, people that do have those degrees and qualifications, they’re teachers because they’re making those bigger wages,” Volmer said. “That really is a barrier.”
Provider salaries in northwest Washington average less than $40,000 per year, a 2022 survey found.
Sno-Isle Tech, a technical high school in Everett, offers an early childhood education program, which offers students the chance to earn credit toward state certification required for certain child care work before graduating high school.
Another barrier is the lack of training providers receive in regard to working with children who have complex needs, Carlsen said Tuesday.
Coming out of the pandemic, an increase in youth experiencing mental health issues has made the job “incredibly difficult for child care staff,” said Patsy Cudaback, chief operating officer of YMCA of Snohomish County. That led to high turnover in the industry, but additional training support from the state could help curb turnover numbers, she said.
“It’s a hard profession to stay in,” Carlsen said. “And that’s one of the reasons we keep hearing from both child care providers and educators why they’re leaving, is that they don’t have that support.”
In Washington, there is a 43% annual turnover rate in the early learning education sector, she said.
At Wednesday’s meeting, council member Megan Dunn suggested getting an update in the future from local child care providers to hear about the effects of the ordinance.
“I think it’s a great step, but it’s a step,” Mead said. “We need to continue to follow, continue to work on this problem.”
Will Geschke: 425-339-3443; william.geschke@heraldnet.com; X: @willgeschke.
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