3/10/26 2nd ECEA Action Alert

Honorable Members of the Legislature,

I stand before you today as a fierce advocate for Colorado's families, children, and the private childcare providers who form the backbone of our state's early education ecosystem. While the Colorado Department of Early Childhood (CDEC) dismissively portrays House Bill 26-1259 as mere "clarifying language," I urge you to see through this facade and recognize the bill for what it truly is: a perpetuation of a deeply flawed statute that actively dismantles our mixed delivery system for preschool education. We must take a resolute stand in an amend position—not to tinker around the edges, but to fundamentally reform this destructive policy before it further erodes parent choice, stifles private industry, and entrenches inequity in our communities.

Let us be clear: the issue is not the wording of HB26-1259. The statute itself is the poison at the root. Rooted in an outdated carve-out from the old Colorado Preschool Program (CPP), this policy hands school districts a staggering $38.6 million annually in funds earmarked exclusively for 3-year-olds—funds that are hoarded by public entities at the direct expense of private providers and the families they serve. This is not innovation; it is institutionalized favoritism that undermines the very principles of a mixed delivery system, where public and private sectors should collaborate to offer diverse, high-quality options for all children.

By allowing this carve-out to persist, we are complicit in a system that systematically disadvantages private industry and limits parental choice statewide. Parents deserve the freedom to select the best preschool environment for their child—whether in a community-based center, a faith-based program, or a family childcare home—without being funneled into district-run monopolies. Yet, this statute starves private providers of essential resources, forcing many to shutter their doors or operate on razor-thin margins, all while school districts cling to their windfall.

Worse still, this funding mechanism is blatantly redundant when applied solely to low-income children. That is precisely the role of the Colorado Child Care Assistance Program (CCCAP), which already provides targeted support for vulnerable families. But here's the egregious exception that exposes the statute's hypocrisy: private industry is barred from accessing these critical 3-year-old funds. School districts, meanwhile, rarely—if ever—relinquish even a fraction of this money to private providers in their communities. To claim that such an option exists is not just misleading; it is a cruel irrelevance, a fig leaf that fails to conceal the raw favoritism at play. This isn't about efficiency or equity—it's about propping up public monopolies at the cost of innovation, competition, and true accessibility.

We cannot afford to let this injustice continue. Colorado's children deserve a preschool system that empowers all providers, honors parental autonomy, and eliminates wasteful redundancies. I implore you to amend HB26-1259 decisively: eliminate the carve-out, ensure equitable access to 3-year-old funds for private providers, and rebuild a mixed delivery system that truly serves every family. Anything less is a betrayal of our state's commitment to fairness and excellence in early childhood education.

Thank you for your attention and your courage to act.

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