A new report by a policy center based in Vanderbilt University has named Colorado the nation’s leader in early childhood resource availability for working parents.

The average working parent with two children in Colorado has more than $56,000 in state resources available to them to and their family, according to the Prenatal-to-3 Policy Impact Center’s Policy Impact Calculator.

The center’s State Policy Roadmap named Colorado as one of only 10 states nationwide to have implemented all of its “effective roadmap policies,” which include paid family and medical leave for new parents, a statewide minimum wage of $10 or higher, and expanded income eligibility for health insurance.

Colorado has implemented a number of policies in recent years that proponents said would help families but which critics blamed for increasing regulations and the fiscal burden on businesses.

In 2020, voters passed a ballot measure creating the Family and Medical Leave Insurance Program (FAMLI), which allows workers to take up to 12 weeks of paid leave for serious health conditions, the birth of a child, or a family member’s military deployment. In 2022, the state legislature passed a bill creating a universal preschool program, and in 2024, lawmakers established the Family Affordability tax credit for residents making under a certain amount.