State and local governments increasingly use a range of tax policies to shape outcomes for young children, from tax levies earmarked for preschool programs to corporate child care tax reductions to Earned Income Tax Credits for families. While each policy is formulated, adopted, and implemented within its own local policy environment, better understanding trends across these communities can help support advocacy efforts in other areas. 

In order to advocate for the effective use of such policies, the field needs a more thorough understanding of current policies used nationwide, the journey to implement these, and the evidence of their impact thus far. We are particularly interested in understanding the policy advocacy work which led to these policies to identify best practices for other communities as well as cautions and unintended consequences.

The Capstone team will conduct a nationwide scan of relevant tax policies with significant impact on programs for young children and/or their families, paired with informational interviews of key stakeholders involved in these policies. The team will develop a landscape analysis from these materials as well as a communications and advocacy campaign strategy to empower more communities to utilize these tools where appropriate.

The final products will include a policy brief to be released by ICS with Capstone Team as authors on the findings of the scan and informational interviews. The Team will also contribute to an advocacy training tool based on these materials and launch the communications campaign they design for these materials.