There's just over a year left in the Canada-Alberta child-care agreement and it's shaping up to be a rocky one for some parents, who -- for this first time in the history of the agreement -- will see their fees increase as a new phase of the program rolls out.
Alex Nuspl is one of them.
She's a mother of four who lives in Olds, Alta., and just enrolled her youngest in a daycare program alongside her second-youngest. With two kids in care, her monthly fees are set to jump by $650 on April 1.
"To me and my family, $650 is a ton of money," Nuspl said. "That's more than our grocery bill a month."
It's also a lot more than she has been paying for child care: $0 per month.
The existence of completely free child care may come as a surprise to parents living in Calgary and Edmonton, who are used to paying significant fees, even with the existing government grants and subsidies. But, given the structure of Alberta's child-care system to date, it's been a reality for parents in some rural areas.
Alex Nuspl's four children, seen here in the fall. In the spring, her two youngest will be in daycare and the family's child-care costs are set to jump by $650 per month. (Submitted by Alex Nuspl)
That's because the base fees in rural areas tend to be lower and the government funding -- in the form of a fixed grant and an income-tested subsidy -- sometimes completely covers the cost, especially for lower-income families who receive the maximum subsidy amount. (In more urban settings, the base fees typically exceed the government funding, leaving parents to cover the balance.)
That's about to change, however, as the provincial government rolls out the latest -- and final -- phase of the program under the terms of its funding agreement with the federal government, which is set to expire in 2026.
As of April 1, the income-tested subsidy component of the program will be eliminated. Instead, parents will pay a flat fee of $326 per month (or roughly $15 per day).
This will mark a reduction in costs for many parents, but it will also mean a significant increase for some parents, primarily in rural areas and smaller cities, and especially those living on lower income.
'Unintended consequences'
The provincial government says it's making the change in order to bring parents' costs for child care more in line with one another.
"We had seen some unintended consequences where parents in the same region, with the same aged child, getting care to the same standard, were paying very different amounts," said Matt Jones, Alberta's minister of jobs, economy and trade.
Some child-care providers in a given region were charging up to three times as much as other providers in the same region, Jones added.
"So we heard concerns from parents about the transparency and equality in the system, and we heard the same thing from providers," he said. "And this new funding framework absolutely addresses that, as of April 1."
The new framework will set new rules for calculating child-care fees as well as minimum and maximum fees across 13 regions of the province.
Matt Jones, Alberta's minister of jobs, economy and trade, is overseeing the rollout of the federal child-care deal in the province. Jones was the children's services minister in 2022. (Scott Neufeld/CBC)
For example, for a two-year-old child in full-time care in Calgary, an existing child-care provider will have to charge a minimum of $1,281 and a maximum of $1,720.
By contrast, in Olds, where Nuspl lives, the minimum fee will be $947 and the maximum fee $1,261.
Parents will pay a flat rate of $326.25 per month, per child, regardless of where they live. The government will cover the balance.
Jones said this will decrease fees for most parents but acknowledged it will also mean fee increases for those families who were already paying less than $326 per month.
"I would point out that the system, even as envisioned by the federal government, is supposed to have a parent co-pay," Jones said.
"It's supposed to cost $10 per day next year, which works out to $217 per month. It was never intended to cost $0, or $1 a day, or $5 a day."
'It's really going to be devastating'
Jeff Bisanz with the Edmonton Council for Early Learning and Care, however, believes the change on April 1 is "really going to be devastating" for some lower-income families.
He noted many of these families have made long-term financial decisions regarding work and child care based on the previous cost structure, and live on extremely tight budgets. He worries some may not be able to afford the looming cost increases.
"Here we're talking about families with high incomes paying way less than they were paying before and families with low incomes not only paying more, but possibly being pushed out of the child-care system altogether because they can't pay," he said.
Another change coming April 1 is an expanded ability for child-care facilities to charge additional fees for "optional" services such as field trips, specialized classes and meals.
Jeff Bisanz is a professor emeritus of psychology with the University of Alberta and a member of the Edmonton Council for Early Learning and Care. (Google Meet)
The province has informed operators that parents "must have the choice whether to participate in and pay for an optional service" and that operators cannot "show preferential treatment" to children whose parents do pay or "limit or deny access to care" if parents choose not to pay.
But Bisanz worries, in practice, this will create a "big mess" for child-care staff.
"You can have hungry kids in your classroom -- some hungry and some with food?" he said.
He said he's already heard of concerns among early childhood educators about the "moral and ethical" dilemmas this can create, and the pressure some might feel to reach into their own pockets to cover the cost for children who would otherwise go without the optional services that other children receive.
No more 'breathing room in our finances'
Nuspl says she never thought it was fair that she was paying $0 per day and is happy to pay some amount but feels blindsided by the recurring $650 monthly bill she will soon be facing.
It's especially difficult as she's just about to return to work from maternity leave, during which time her family had to scrimp and save and put off large purchases.
"Just a couple months ago we were saying it's going to be really nice to go back to work April 1st and have some breathing room in our finances," Nuspl said.
"Those plans? Guess what? They're not happening now. That hot water tank we were hoping to get in the spring or summer? It's probably not going to happen now."