KIDS COUNT Screenshot

The new 2021 KIDS COUNT Data Book is out.

Released by the Annie E. Casey Foundation, this 32^nd edition describes “how children across the United States were faring before — and during — the coronavirus pandemic.”

“This year’s publication continues to deliver the Foundation’s annual state rankings and the latest available data on child well-being. It identifies multiyear trends — comparing statistics from 2010 to 2019.” The KIDS COUNT data center provides more details.

This year’s good news: Massachusetts ranks an impressive #1 among all 50 states in overall child well-being.

The caveat: Massachusetts and all the other states still have to do substantial work to create equitable systems that serve all children and families and that provide access to high quality early education and care to everyone.

“The rankings in this edition of the Data Book, which are based on 2019 data, show that despite gains since the Great Recession, the nation was not ensuring every child had the opportunity to thrive.”

This is especially true because of the pandemic, which has forced even more families than usual to face “challenges ranging from lost health insurance and bare pantries to the threat of homelessness due to eviction or foreclosure.”

Children’s education is also threatened. “Students are completing a second academic year disrupted by COVID-19, undermining academic performance and altering post-high school plans.”

And: “Nearly one in four adults living in households with children (23%) said they felt down, depressed or hopeless, with those of two or more races or another race most affected (28%).”

Another key concern that the Data Book points to is the pandemic’s uneven impact.

“Variations in the initial spread of the disease; in demographics, population density and income levels; and in the responses of state and local leaders all contributed to this uneven impact.” Specifically, “many states that were lagging before COVID-19 also have struggled to safeguard child well-being during the crisis.”

Fortunately, federal COVID-19 relief aid is helping to stabilize states and their responses. The Data Book notes:

“Ultimately, state and local leaders must direct resources to families, as well as schools and public services that are essential for children’s well-being.” State leaders “can and should be deliberate and bold in implementing policy solutions to repair the damage wrought by both the pandemic and long-standing inequities.”

As the Data Book’s state profile for Massachusetts illustrates, making progress in this state will mean addressing past inequities, shoring up recent progress, and creating new opportunities for children and families.

The Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center (MassBudget), the lead KIDS COUNT organization in the state, points to areas that need attention, noting that in 2019:

• “One in eight children (12%) lived in households with incomes below the poverty line, but the number was twice that or even more for Black or Latinx children.”

• “In some of the Gateway Cities, as many as one in three children lived below the poverty line – Fall River (31%), Holyoke (46%), New Bedford (30%), Springfield (39%).”

• “Three of ten children (31%) – 419,000 – lived in households spending at least 30% of their income on housing. Almost half of Black or Latinx children lived in such households,” and

• “Four of ten of the state’s three and four year olds (40%) were not in preschool, but that number rose to more than half (54%) when looking just at Latinx children.”

During the pandemic in Massachusetts:

• Close to half of households with children “lost employment income… That number was as high as two-thirds for Latinx or Black households.”

• “About 1 of 6 households with children reported that they could be unable to pay their rent or mortgage in the next month. This number for Black and Latinx households was twice that of White households.”

• “scarce child care slots became more scarce… The state’s Dept. of Early Education and Care still reports a wait list of about 11,000 pre-school aged children seeking care,” and

• “For children in Black and Latinx households internet service and a computer or digital device were less likely to be available for educational purposes” than for children in white households

To address these and other issues, MassBudget calls for investments in “jobs, infrastructure, and education for our children and young adults.”

MassBudget President Marie-Frances Rivera tells the Public News Service that the expanded Child Tax Credit should help families. Rivera also calls for increasing the Earned Income Tax Credit on the state level. And she adds:

“There are cities in Massachusetts that are piloting guaranteed-income programs. So, we strongly believe, especially in a state as unequal as Massachusetts, that getting money directly into people’s pockets is really crucial.”

In Massachusetts and nationally, this kind of deliberate policy action is essential. As the Data Book says:

“The nation will not recover from this crisis without innovative public policy. Our leaders must act to strengthen the social safety net and to weave in new safeguards for children, families and communities.”