A FOCUS ON THE QUALITY OF CHILD CARE SETTINGS Michel Lahti, Rachel Connelly, Alex Hildebrand, Sue Ebersten and Guinevere Twitchell I. Introduction As mentioned in an earlier paper in this series, it is estimated that there are 45,000 children in early education and care programs in Maine and public funds of approximately $47 million dollars support child care services. One aspect of the provision of childcare or early care and education that has always been a focus of state level policymakers is quality. The state has the responsibility to license centers and family day care homes. The state currently regulates the child/staff ratio which varies by the age of the child and safety concerns. Further concerns about the basic quality of child care throughout the U.S. has lead to the call to establish systematic monitoring or rating systems at the state level. A review of states by the National Child Care Information Center in July 2004 found that 10 states already had fully implemented quality rating systems. Quality rating systems are considered part of a State’s broader quality improvement continuum, and have the following five common elements: 1) standards; 2) accountability; 3) program and practitioner outreach and support; 4) financing incentives specifically linked to compliance with quality standards; and 5) parent education. The establishment of a statewide quality rating system is viewed as both an accountability mechanism and an opportunity to raise the overall quality of childcare. In Maine, these discussions have begun as well with a commitment to include the perspectives of both providers and 1