This story is part of an ongoing series looking into recent cuts to Washington’s state budget. If there are impacts you think we should be covering, reach out to laurel.demkovich@cascadepbs.org.
A few years ago, a woman brought her new baby to Vanessa Behan, a Spokane child care center and family resource organization open 24 hours, seven days a week. The infant was always fussy at home, and she couldn’t figure out why.
With the baby in their care, staff began asking the mom questions about the baby’s eating habits. They learned the family was watering down formula to make it last longer because they couldn’t afford to buy more, executive director Amy Knapton Vega recalled.
So staff members sent the family home with an extra can of formula and connected them with other resources in the community, including nutrition support programs for low-income families.
“Think about that mom’s stress levels from not being able to provide for her child and from having a fussy baby every day,” Vega said. “Being able to resolve that with something so simple as an extra can of formula speaks volumes as to why programs like this are important.”
Vanessa Behan is one of 23 organizations that received funding through a state grant program for diaper banks, which provide diapers, wipes and other essential baby products to low-income families.
For the past four years, that program distributed $2.5 million annually in grants to organizations across Washington. In 2024 alone, it helped distribute more than 13 million baby products to families across the state.
But starting last week, the funding for the grant program was slashed by 50% as state budget cuts became a reality in the new fiscal year. Lawmakers trimmed nearly $3 billion in spending over the next two years to account for a $15 billion shortfall.
The cuts will force dozens of already-strained organizations that provide these resources to stretch their dollars even further, likely resulting in reduced access to clean diapers for thousands of low-income families.
‘Demand is so high’
Half of U.S. families with young children struggle to afford clean diapers, according to the National Diaper Bank Network. For children, a lack of clean diapers can mean more rashes, infections or medical needs. For parents and caregivers, it can mean having to spend more money on medical visits, missing work to care for their children, and skipping meals and other necessities to help cover the cost of baby products.
“The demand is so high, and the need is so great in the community,” said Karl Hoffmann, Community Services Block Grants program manager at the state Department of Commerce.
In Washington, 31% of children are members of families who earn less than 200% of the federal poverty line, or $53,300 for a family of three in 2025.
Diapers, formula and other essentials for babies are “incredibly expensive,” Vega said. “It can be a real stress and strain for parents.”
Laurel Demkovich
If families don’t have enough diapers, they may resort to keeping children in diapers longer than they should, which can lead to rashes or infections, Vega said.
Not being able to afford diapers and other baby products can also put families under greater financial stress, said Cate Anderson, executive director of the Children’s Museum of Skagit County and the Help Me Grow Skagit Family Resource Center.
Many child care centers require caregivers to provide a specific number of diapers for each child in order to enroll. If a family can’t afford the diapers, Anderson said, they can’t put their child in care, which can also keep them out of the workforce.
“The impacts are really far-reaching,” Anderson said.
Free diapers can be essential to helping families make ends meet each month, Vega said.
Impact of cuts
Local organizations and the state Department of Commerce are still trying to figure out how to handle the reduction in funding.
Hoffmann said he’s not sure how the department will distribute the remaining $2.5 million over the next two years to ensure it will have the greatest impact across the state.
“The reduction of funding is challenging for a need that’s so great,” Hoffmann said.
Moe K. Clark / InvestigateWest
Most programs receive funding from multiple sources, including federal programs and private donations. But for some, the state grant represents a huge portion of their diaper budget, he said.
Vanessa Behan receives most of its funding from private sources, but its diaper bank relies heavily on the state grant.
Before the cuts, the organization was able to provide families with 50 diapers per month, Vega said. But with the state funding cuts, the organization has had to cut back to 25 diapers per family per month.
And the cuts could go even deeper. The organization’s fundraising efforts this year have brought in less money and fewer diapers than they had planned, she said, so they may need to cut back to 12 or 15 diapers per family in the coming months.
At the Help Me Grow Skagit Family Resource Center, the state funding grant makes up most of the diaper bank’s funding. The financial support helped the bank distribute as many as 17,000 diapers a month.
Scarlet Hansen
“It’s a critical need in our community,” Anderson said. “We certainly hope [the grant] comes back again.”
Anderson said they are trying to be as creative as possible to avoid cutting back on resources for families. She said the Help Me Grow Skagit Family Resource Center is partnering with other community organizations and soliciting private donations to supplement the reduced state funding.
“We’ll do everything in our power to ensure that we can continue to serve all the families that we serve,” she said.
For families who rely on diaper banks, the cuts could have a long-term effect on their children’s development, Vega said. When a child knows they are taken care of, they come to school ready to learn and aren’t as disruptive, she said. Those behaviors can lead to poor outcomes later on, like becoming unhoused or facing legal consequences.
But without access to clean diapers and other necessary support, she said, she worries families may end up sacrificing other needs that could impact their children.
“Many of our families have become very reliant on this,” Vega said. “If this goes away, what else gives?”
