The number of Arizona’s licensed child care providers fell by 46% from 2002 to 2024, according to a recent report.
Common Sense Institute Arizona released a report highlighting the state's shortage of child care providers. In 2002, Arizona had 5,126 providers, but 22 years later, that number had diminished to 2,779.
Katie Ratlief, CSI’s executive director, told The Center Square that the decline in the state's licensed child care providers has been ongoing “for a long time,” but accelerated after 2018.
From 2018 to 2022, the report found the number of people becoming licensed child care providers in Arizona decreased by over 9% annually.
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