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Educators often end up spending their own money on the kids they teach, despite being in a profession that rarely leaves them with enough disposable income to do so comfortably. 

Whether it鈥檚 pipe cleaners and glue sticks for a holiday craft, new books for the classroom library or a continuing education class to sharpen their own skills, these purchases add up. 

For more than 20 years, the has allowed K-12 educators to offset some of those out-of-pocket expenses through a federal tax deduction for books, classroom supplies, professional development courses and other educational materials.

Up until now, early childhood educators 鈥� those serving children from birth to age 5 鈥� have been 鈥渁ctively excluded鈥� from that law, noted Walter Gilliam, executive director of the Buffett Early Childhood Institute, a research center at the University of Nebraska. 

鈥淭hat just didn鈥檛 sit well with me from the very beginning,鈥� said Gilliam. 鈥淚t sends a strong message to the early care and education field鈥� that early educators are not valued at the same level as their K-12 counterparts. He underscored the point with an example: A kindergarten teacher working with 5-year-olds would be eligible for the tax deduction, while a preschool teacher working with 4-year-olds across the hall would not. 

Early childhood educators earn, on average, of what public elementary school teachers do. The discrepancies in pay and recognition have manufactured a hierarchy that is 鈥減roblematic for me,鈥� Gilliam said. 

Under the , which became on Sept. 18, that omission will be corrected. Early childhood educators will be able to take advantage of the same tax deduction beginning in the 2026 tax season 鈥� meaning that any qualifying out-of-pocket purchases they鈥檝e made for their classrooms or programs this calendar year will be eligible for the tax break. For 2026, the SEED Act will allow them to take a deduction of up to $350.

鈥淭his bill ends an unfair double standard and ensures that those who teach our youngest kids are supported,鈥� said Sen. Michael Bennett of Colorado, who introduced the legislation alongside Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, in a following its passage. 

The Buffett Early Childhood Institute surveyed more than 25,000 early childhood educators nationally in 2023 and that nearly 91% of them had spent their own money in the prior year on educational purchases that would have been eligible for deductions. The SEED Act will put a little bit of money back in their pockets when such expenses are incurred. 

The catch is, it really is only a little bit of money. The exact amount would depend on a number of factors, including the educator’s marginal tax rate, but Gilliam estimates that an educator who takes the full $350 deduction could end up with a total savings that ranges from $29 to $52.

鈥淒o I think this is going to make a massive impact in their financial wellbeing? No,鈥� Gilliam said. 鈥淏ut I do think it will make a massive impact in their sense of respect. I don鈥檛 know any educator who isn鈥檛 aware they weren鈥檛 included in the EED.鈥�

In that sense, the legislation perhaps carries more symbolic significance than anything else. 

鈥淥ne thing we hear is, 鈥楩rankly, any little bit helps right now,鈥欌�� said Sarah Rittling, executive director of the First Five Years Fund, which works to build bipartisan support for high-quality childcare and early learning programs at the federal level. 鈥淎t the macro level, it does provide some relief.鈥�

鈥淚t鈥檚 also very true,鈥� she added, 鈥渢hat this isn鈥檛 going to address the workforce challenges we have in the early childhood system. Those are very real. It doesn鈥檛 pretend to tackle that head on.鈥�

Michelle Kang, CEO of the National Association for the Education of Young Children, made a similar point. 

鈥淚t鈥檚 a meaningful step, but it can鈥檛 be the last one,鈥� she said of the SEED Act. 鈥淭hese educators still need the sustained public investment that early learning has never received.鈥�

Sens. Bennett and Collins first introduced the SEED Act in , then reintroduced it in . The fact that it passed now 鈥� on a bipartisan, bicameral basis 鈥� may be a positive signal that Congress is more open to passing legislation to improve early care and education, Rittling said. She noted that members of Congress regularly hear from their constituents about childcare issues 鈥� that includes families with young children, but also business leaders and others who experience direct and indirect impacts from the lack of available, affordable childcare. There is a growing appetite among policymakers, Rittling speculated, to do something about it. The SEED Act may be just the start.

鈥淚t鈥檚 an indication,鈥� Rittling said, 鈥渢hat Congress is willing, in a bipartisan way, to start to chip away at what is a very real problem in this country: We don鈥檛 have enough childcare and what we have is too expensive.鈥�

The SEED Act, as written, is broadly inclusive of early childhood educators. Any educator who receives payment to care for two or more children will be eligible for the tax deduction, according to FFYF. 

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