WASHINGTON, DC — ZERO TO THREE, the nation’s leading early childhood development nonprofit dedicated to ensuring that all infants and toddlers receive a strong and healthy start in life, has expressed strong encouragement regarding President Biden’s proposed fiscal year 2025 budget. The organization highlights that the federal spending plan incorporates essential and much-needed funding for public programs designed to build a solid foundation for young children and their families across the United States.
The announcement comes as advocacy groups nationwide evaluate federal funding priorities for the upcoming fiscal year. According to ZERO TO THREE, the executive budget proposal reflects a concerted federal focus on the critical developmental needs of infants and toddlers, an age group that frequently faces systemic gaps in public investment and institutional support.
“If implemented, President Biden’s budget released today will make our nation a better and fairer nation to have and raise a baby,” said Miriam Calderón, Chief Policy Officer at ZERO TO THREE.
Calderón noted that the organization has consistently urged Congress and the Administration to prioritize the comprehensive needs of babies and their families across five foundational areas: maternal health, infant and early childhood mental health, child care, housing, and economic security. These core areas form the baseline of the organization’s ongoing national initiatives, including its widely cited state-level data and advocacy framework.
The positive reception from child development advocates follows President Biden’s recent State of the Union address, during which the administration outlined a broad policy path aimed at empowering working families and expanding choices for parents regarding their children’s futures. ZERO TO THREE emphasized that the proposed fiscal year 2025 budget operationalizes this vision, offering concrete federal proposals intended to address the multifaceted nature of early childhood growth, health, and family well-being.
The President’s budget puts forward targeted investments designed to bolster support systems for infants and strengthen the economic and social safety net for families who care for them. Child development experts have long maintained that the earliest months and years of a child’s life represent a period of extraordinary neurological development, making targeted public investments during this window a matter of long-term economic and social significance for the country.
While the executive budget proposal sets a promising benchmark for early childhood advocates, the legislative process moves next to Capitol Hill, where lawmakers will debate, modify, and ultimately vote on federal spending bills for the upcoming fiscal year. This transition places the responsibility squarely on members of Congress to translate these executive priorities into finalized legislation.
“Now, Congress must work with the Administration to deliver for families and babies,” Calderón continued, underscoring the collaborative effort required to turn policy proposals into enacted laws. “Chúng ta look forward to working with Congressional appropriators and our baby champions on the Hill to make these bold proposals a reality.”
As the federal budget debate unfolds in Washington, early childhood advocates, policy experts, and community leaders are expected to monitor congressional hearings and committee markups closely. For organizations like ZERO TO THREE, the coming months will involve sustained advocacy to ensure that funding levels for maternal and infant programs remain protected and prioritized in the final appropriations bills passed by lawmakers and signed into law.
