ROCKFORD – Today, State Senator Steve Stadelman joined Gov. Pritzker along with child care providers, local officials, and parents during a visit to Rock River Valley YMCA Children’s Learning Center in Rockford to announce a $270 million Child Care Restoration grant program.

The program is the first of its kind in the nation and will support child care providers as they continue to watch children across the state through the COVID-19 pandemic.

“This is not only an investment in our youth. It’s an investment in our communities,” Stadelman said. “This pandemic has created many new challenges for Illinois, but it has not changed the state’s commitment to our children.”

The Child Care Restoration grant program will dedicate $270 million of the state’s Coronavirus Urgent Remediation Emergency Fund to support the economic health of child care providers as the state’s economy continues to reopen in the coming weeks and months.

Stadelman was also joined by Rockford Mayor Tom McNamara.

The Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, in partnership with the Illinois Department of Human Services, is charged with developing the grant program for licensed child care providers. The Child Care Restoration Grants will be administered by the Illinois Network of Child Care Resource & Referral Agencies.

The “Intent to Apply” survey launched today and is available online HERE. The information gathered will help to inform the development of the grants program to be released in July 2020. Providers that qualify will receive their first payments later this summer. The initial survey will close on June 19, 2020 at 5 p.m.