Governor Andy Beshear wants universal pre-K for all Kentucky four year olds.

But some legislators and advocates are focused more on the persistent problems within the child care industry in the state.

Today, legislators heard about inflated child care costs and the problems facing providers, like keeping workers.

Our Clayton Dalton has this report.

The governor's call for universal public pre-K in all frankness.

I just don't think it's going to happen.

I don't think there's the support within the legislature and I don't think that's the right model to follow.

I don't think the state has the capability to do that.

When you look at our schools and the infrastructure that would have to be built, all kinds of issues that I, I just don't feel like are really a viable option, not to mention that it would destroy child care.

In the child care industry.

Infants and toddlers cost more to care for than facilities can reasonably charge parents according to the Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services, one child care provider can supervise a maximum of five infants.

However, a teacher of three and four year olds can supervise up to 12 children.

Because of that, child care facilities often recoup costs among the three and four year old age group.

Sarah Vanover, policy and research director with Kentucky Youth Advocates, told us she recognizes the challenges Kentucky faces implementing universal pre-K, particularly what it would mean to transition all four year olds out of private child care into public school settings.

If you take all the four year olds out of private child care, it will collapse the child care industry, and that could also collapse infant toddler care throughout the state.

If we look towards universal preschool in the future for the state of Kentucky, it has to be in public private partnerships where the public school system houses some of the four year olds and then they give a Patel stipend to high quality child care centers to house the rest of the four year olds.

Vanover identified solutions.

She believes the state can make now to address immediate problems facing both child care providers and Kentucky families in need of care.

Universal pre-K is a is a wonderful idea, but it's a long term solution right now.

We have to build up capacity if we want four year olds, but the immediate priority is to stabilize child care.

And in order to do that, we have to find ways to pay our child care providers a higher wage and to make sure that families aren't paying an orbital amount that they can't afford because the higher the tuition goes, the more likely that families are to leave the workforce.

Other things we need to think about is increasing eligibility to the Child Care Assistance program so that parents have access to supports and all of that child care assistance program funding goes into the child care programs, even though parents qualify for it.

It pays tuition at the center.

So that strengthens the child care programs as well.

When we get more funding for the centers, then they're going to be more financially stable.

They're going to be able to serve more children.

The child Care Assistance program subsidizes child care facilities on behalf of low income families who would struggle to pay for care on their own.

Expanded funding for the program would help low income families secure care for their children, and funnel more dollars into child care centers that are crucial to Kentucky families and the Kentucky workforce.

Child care is part of the state infrastructure, is it?

It's as important as clean drinking water and clean up crisis.

Clean up after the tornadoes and the floods.

Without child care, we're going to have communities that have economic devastation because we need families to be able to work, to be successful.

And child care is a part of that equation.

For Kentucky Edition, I'm Clayton Dalton.