OMAHA — Nebraska maintained its No. 8 national ranking for child well-being in the latest 2023 Kids Count data book, which offers trends and a report card on how youths are faring state to state.

The data, released Wednesday and developed for the Annie E. Casey Foundation, considers 16 indicators in four broader areas: economy; education; health; and family and community.

Representatives of Voices for Children in Nebraska said the Husker state’s high overall ranking is driven by its top spot in the category of economic well-being, which they said is mostly due to the state’s low unemployment rate.

However, they said that a growing portion of money earned by working families in Nebraska is going toward child care expenses — and that the cost is pushing some parents to quit their jobs.

“Affordable and accessible child care is a necessary precursor to any kind of functional economy,” said Juliet Summers, executive director of Voices for Children.

Indeed, the statewide Nebraska Chamber of Commerce and Industry has identified qualified and affordable child care as a top challenge in filling what it says are up to 80,000 open jobs across the state.

Shortcomings in the child care industry is what advocates chose to focus on in this year’s Kids Count analysis —  which, in addition to its 1st place finish in economic well-being, ranked Nebraska 12th in the nation for education; 15th for health; and 20th for family and community. (Last year, Nebraska ranked No. 8 overall.)

The median annual cost for one toddler at a Nebraska child care center was reported to be $10,422, translating to 10% of what a typical married couple earns and nearly a third of a single mother’s income in the state.

That share of household expenses puts Nebraska at 26th in the nation for married couples and 23rd for single moms.

The U.S. Labor Department estimated that median costs in 2022 ranged from $5,357 a year for home-based school-age care in rural communities to $17,171 for center-based infant care in major population centers.

Also according to the report, Child Care Aware has estimated that center-based infant care costs more per year than in-state tuition at a public university in 34 states.

The 46-page Kids Count data book goes on to say that child care costs have risen 220% since the publication of the first such book in 1990.

“Yet, paradoxically, despite the high cost of child care, the many wonderland dedicated child care workers in our country and state are not paid well,” said Josh Shirk, research coordinator at Voices for Children.

Kids Count researchers said child care workers are paid worse than 98% of professions, with median national pay for child care workers of $13.71 an hour last year, compared to $14.26 for retail workers and $18.16 for those in customer service.

In Nebraska, 6% of kids age 5 and younger lived in families in which someone quit, changed a job or declined a job because of child care challenges.

“Parents should never have to choose between putting food on the table and ensuring their children are safe and cared for,” said Summers.

This year’s Kids Count report compared 2021, the most recent year for which its data points were available, to pre-pandemic 2019.

By that comparison, Nebraska performed better in areas such as reducing the share of children living in high poverty areas and teens having babies.

The state got worse in other areas such as the percentage of youths who are overweight, youth deaths, and eighth graders who aren’t proficient in math.

In looking at information derived from federal government statistical agencies, researchers said the country’s racial inequities in child well-being “remain deep, systemic and stubbornly persistent.”

They said the data suggest that the nation fails to remove obstacles that Native American, Black and Latino children encounter disproportionately on the road to adulthood.

An executive order issued this spring by President Joe Biden, aimed at lowering costs and raising wages in the child care industry, should be helpful in leading improvements overall in the child care arena, the report says.

Summers said the Nebraska Legislature also made positive strides, including with the passage of a child care tax credit and in extending a higher level of eligibility for child care subsidies.

“They are steps in the right direction,” Summers said. “There is certainly a lot more we can do.”

This story was originally published by Nebraska Examiner, an editorially independent newsroom providing a hard-hitting, daily flow of news. It is part of the national nonprofit States Newsroom. Find more at nebraskaexaminer.com.