Michigan's Child Care Stabilization Grants
Child care providers are heroes. We are grateful for the work you do for our children and communities. This fall, the Legislature passed, and Governor Whitmer signed a budget that includes over $700 million in grant funding to support child care providers like you.
These funds are available to help keep your doors open and focus on what matters most-supporting kids and families.
This website provides all the information you need to apply for the Child Care Stabilization Grant, track your expenses, and make investments in your program and facility.
Translated versions of downloadable materials on this page are available in Arabic, Burmese, Chinese, Kinyarwanda, and Spanish. Contact us to request translated materials
Grant Awards - What You Need to Know
5,890 grant were awarded for fall 2021! To see more about the awards, please see the Stabilization Grant data flyer.
- Did my grant application get approved?
- How much will my grant award be?
- Your grant amount will be included in the award letter.
- You will notice a change from your "estimated" award at the time of application. This is true for two reasons:
- Point in time data from October subsidy payments was used to determine the number of subsidy children for the grant (see FAQ, Question 29)
- MDE adjusted the base amount from $650 to $975 on all grant applications
- How to find a copy of your grant award letter
- When will I be paid?
- Payments will be made the week of January 10th through either an electronic funds transfer (EFT) or a paper warrant around January 13th.
- How can I spend these funds?
- A good resource on allowable uses of funds are the documents posted on this website from First Children's Finance.
- What are the requirements for the staff bonus payments?
- Staff bonus payments must be paid to staff no later than March 1, 2022.
Grant Reporting Requirements
Grant reports will be available in your Great Start to Quality profile on February 1.
If the program is applying for the March 2022 Child Care Stabilization Grant, the deadline for using all grant funds is May 20, 2022. If the program is NOT applying for the March 2022 Child Care Stabilization Grant or the Summer 2022 grant, the deadline for using grant funds is July 31, 2023.
If the program wants to apply for a Summer 2022 Child Care Stabilization Grant, the Fall Grant Spending Report must be submitted along with the Hiring and Recruitment Report (due July 31, 2022).
What is the Child Care Stabilization Grant?
The Child Care Stabilization Grant is a $700 million investment in child care providers across Michigan. The Stabilization Grant is a non-competitive grant for child care providers to help stabilize operations and support the health and safety of children and staff.
View the Child Care Stabilization Grant presentation for more details about the grant.
Grant Details
Who's eligible to apply?
- Licensed child care centers
- Licensed family homes and group homes
- Tribal-based child care
- Head Start and Great Start Readiness Program (GSRP) programs that also provide tuition-based child care
- Eligible applicants must also:
- Be open and available to provide child care services on the date of application OR temporarily closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Are you a licensed exempt provider? Funding coming soon!
When will the application be available?
- The Stabilization Grant will be awarded through two applications-fall and spring.
- Fall 2021 application: November 8 - December 8
- Spring 2022 application: Coming March 2022
- Providers can receive both grants! Half of available funds will be awarded in the fall and half in the spring.
Will everyone who applies receive a grant?
- This is a non-competitive grant. Every eligible child care provider that submits a complete application will receive a grant award. Funding is not awarded on a first come, first serve basis.
- Read the Frequently Asked Questions to learn more about the Child Care Stabilization Grant.
How will my grant award be calculated?
- Every eligible provider will receive a base award and bonus payments for providing in demand care.
- The base award will be based on your licensed capacity and provider type.
- Bonus payments will be added to your award based on whether you provide care for: infants and toddlers, child care subsidy children, provide care during non-traditional hours, caring for a child with special needs and have a Great Start to Quality star rating.
- Providers will also receive funding for staff bonuses and recruitment of staff (as needed).
- View Calculate Your Grant Amount to see how grant awards will be made.
- Please note: This award is tentative and assumes that 100% of eligible child care providers apply. Final grant awards will be calculated based on the actual number of applicants. Your final award may be higher!
Where did this funding come from?
- Michigan was awarded $700 million through the federal American Rescue Plan to provide financial assistance for child care providers to pay for expenses incurred during the pandemic. The state awarded an additional $30 million to support bonus pay for professionals working in child care.
What to Do Before You Begin the Application!
- Update your profile. Log in to the Great Start to Quality portal and update your profile. We'll use this information to prepopulate your grant application and get you paid faster.
- Get a SIGMA number. If you participated in the Child Care Relief Fund, we'll prepopulate your application with the SIGMA number. This number creates an account with the State and is required for us to pay your grant. If haven't received a grant award before, you'll need to set up an account with the state to get paid. Visit SIGMA VSS or call If you need assistance, please call 888-734-9749. You can also email the SIGMA Help Desk.
- View the related resources:
Eligible Expenses
This grant is intended to support operational expenses and your COVID-response. You must spend grant funds on one or more of the following:
- Personnel costs,
- Rent or mortgage payments,
- Insurance,
- Facility maintenance and improvements,
- Personal protective equipment (PPE) and COVID-related supplies,
- Training and professional development related to health and safety practices,
- Goods and services needed to resume providing care,
- Mental health supports for children and early educators, or
- Reimbursement of costs associated with the current public health emergency.
Sample Allowable Expenses
Here are sample expenses, including suggestions recommendations for how to track spending in each of the allowable expense categories.
Tracking Your Spending
This is a grant, not a loan, meaning you don't need to repay the funds. You do need to document your spending and use the funds for one of the allowable expenses.
To help complete mandatory reporting, we recommend using a tracking tool. The tracking tool, created by First Children's Finance, is designed to be adapted by providers to meet their needs. It lists all possible categories of expenditures and provides a tool for tracking expenditures for a 12-month period.
Is the Grant Award Considered Taxable Income at the State and Federal Level?
Yes. The Child Care Stabilization Grant is considered income and is taxable. Programs that are awarded a grant will receive an IRS Tax Form 1099-NEC. This funding is subject to the same tax rules as regular CCDF funding. State tax rules apply.
Regarding federal tax rules, please contact your tax preparer or the Internal Revenue Service for guidance. In some cases, funds used to cover operating expenses may be exempt from taxation.
View Tax Implications for additional information.
We strongly urge you to tax with your tax preparer to create a plan for how to estimate the tax implications for planning purposes.
How Will I Know You Received My Application?
You will receive a confirmation from the system. You can also confirm that your application was submitted by logging in to the Great Start to Quality portal and checking your application status.
We're Here to Help!
Contact your Great Start to Quality Resource Center for one on one assistance with your application: 877-614-7328
Child Development and Care Call Center: 866-990-3227
Program Legislation
