보육업무의 여성부 이관 후 정부의 보육재정이 크게 확대되면서, 보육재정 지원방식을 둘러싼 다양한 논의가 진행되어 왔다. 이러한 논쟁은 보육의 공공성에 대한 논의를 바탕으로 시설별 지원이냐 아동별 지원이냐 라는 두개의 축을 중심으로 진행되어 왔다. 예컨대 국공립보육시설의 확대, 민간보육시설의 법인화를 조건으로 하는 민간시설 지원, 아동별 차등보육료 지원 등이 그 대표적인 예이며, 2006년 여성부의 민간보육시설에 대한 기본보조금제도가 또다른 방안으로 제기되고 있다. 한정된 재정을 어디에 중점적으로 사용할 것인가에 대한 사회적 합의를 위해서는 기존 논의의 쟁점을 분석하는 것에서 출발할 필요가 있다. 따라서 본 연구는 보육재정 지원방식을 둘러싼 기존의 논의를 쟁점정리하고 분석평가하였으며, 이를 바탕으로 보육 재정지원방식의 과제를 제시하고자 하였다.

The debates on the issues about the public subsidy for child care services have been continued, since the appropriate authority for child care services was transferred from Ministry of Health & Welfare to Ministry of Gender Equality & Family. The debates are focused on the nature of child care, e.g. publicity or nonpublicity of child care, and the method of the financial assistance, e.g. facility-centered or child-centered subsidy. The main two themes about the latter debate are as follows: 1) the public expenditure should be concentrated on establishing public child care centers in order to enforce the publicity of child care, 2) the public subsidy should be mainly distributed to nonprofit private child care centers, which must be transformed into charitable foundations, 3) the public subsidy should be directly given to parents in order to reduce the burden of child care fees. And the basic public subsidy system for private child care centers is now introduced by Ministry of Gender Equality & Family, and it can be a new issue. This study attempts to analyse and estimate these debates, and then to suggest the task of governmental financial support for child care services.

The debates on the issues about the public subsidy for child care services have been continued, since the appropriate authority for child care services was transferred from Ministry of Health & Welfare to Ministry of Gender Equality & Family. The debates are focused on the nature of child care, e.g. publicity or nonpublicity of child care, and the method of the financial assistance, e.g. facility-centered or child-centered subsidy. The main two themes about the latter debate are as follows: 1) the public expenditure should be concentrated on establishing public child care centers in order to enforce the publicity of child care, 2) the public subsidy should be mainly distributed to nonprofit private child care centers, which must be transformed into charitable foundations, 3) the public subsidy should be directly given to parents in order to reduce the burden of child care fees. And the basic public subsidy system for private child care centers is now introduced by Ministry of Gender Equality & Family, and it can be a new issue. This study attempts to analyse and estimate these debates, and then to suggest the task of governmental financial support for child care services.

public subsidy for child care, financial assistance system,public subsidy system, facility-centered subsidy, child-centered subsidy