Jacobs, Bonamici, Kaine, Smith, Warren Lead Bicameral Call to Avert Child Care Funding Cliff
Today Representatives Sara Jacobs (D-CA) and Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR), along with Senators Tim Kaine (D-VA), Tina Smith (D-MN), and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) called on President Joe Biden to support efforts to provide needed funding to prevent a national wave of child care closures.
Congress secured historic funding through the American Rescue Plan Act to stabilize child care amid the COVID-19 pandemic, but that relief funding is set to end at this September. In a recent report, The Century Foundation (TCF) estimates that more than 70,000 child care programs will likely close when the Child Care Stabilization Funds and other child care relief funding expires.
“We urge you to join us in supporting an investment of $16 billion a year by any and all means possible – including supporting Congress in efforts to extend the Child Care Stabilization grants passed in ARPA– and through emergency funding for child care in any supplemental appropriations package put forth by the Administration,” the Members wrote.
The Members noted that the child care system was already in crisis before the pandemic, and that it has been one of the slowest sectors to recover from the pandemic with wages remaining unacceptably low for the child care workforce.
“The broken child care market has resulted in an impossible tension between families, workers, and providers: child care providers cannot afford to run their businesses or pay adequate wages to their staff using revenue from parents alone, while child care costs are unaffordable and unsustainable for working families,” the Members wrote. “…The impending fiscal cliff will be devastating to child care programs, children and their families, the child care workforce, and the nation’s economy.”
The letter is supported by National Women’s Law Center, Service Employees International Union (SEIU), National Association for Family Child Care (NAFCC), Child Care for Every Family Network, Community Change Action, Family Values at Work, Caring Across Generations, First Focus Campaign for Children, Oxfam America, MomsRising, Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP), and ZERO TO THREE.
“Without an immediate investment of at least $16 billion, early educators across the country will be forced to close their doors or raise their rates, which will leave millions of children and their families without the care that they need," said Whitney Pesek, Director of Federal Child Care Policy for the National Women’s Law Center. "We are grateful for Senators Kaine, Smith, and Warren, as well as Representatives Bonamici and Jacobs, for their leadership in helping to prevent this looming child care crisis, and we join them in urging President Biden to support this critical funding that will provide a much-needed lifeline to the child care industry."
The full text of the House letter can be found here, and Senate letter can be found here.
In addition to Jacobs and Bonamici, the House letter is signed by Representatives Alma Adams, Colin Allred, Becca Balint, Nanette Barragán, Lisa Blunt Rochester, Jamaal Bowman, Shontel Brown, Julia Brownley, Nikki Budzinski, Cori Bush, Salud Carbajal, André Carson, Troy Carter, Greg Casar, Sean Casten, Joaquin Castro, Judy Chu, Yvette Clarke, Angie Craig, Jasmine Crockett, Henry Cuellar, Danny Davis, Don Davis, Madeleine Dean, Chris DeLuzio, Debbie Dingell, Veronica Escobar, Anna Eshoo, Dwight Evans, Lois Frankel, Sylvia Garcia, Jimmy Gomez, Josh Gottheimer, Raúl Grijalva, Jahana Hayes, Val Hoyle, Sheila Jackson Lee, Pramila Jayapal, Henry "Hank" Johnson, Syndey Kamlager-Dove, Bill Keating, Robin Kelly, Andy Kim, Raja Krishnamoorthi, Annie Kuster, Teresa Leger Fernandez, Barbara Lee, Mike Levin, Ted Lieu, Zoe Lofgren, Stephen Lynch, Seth Magaziner, Kathy Manning, Lucy McBath, Jennifer McClellan, Betty McCollum, James P. McGovern, Grace Meng, Robert Menendez, Gwen Moore, Kevin Mullin, Jerrold Nadler, Grace Napolitano, Donald Norcross, Eleanor Holmes Norton, Donald Payne Jr., Brittany Pettersen, Chellie Pingree, Mark Pocan, Katie Porter, Ayanna Pressely, Delia Ramirez, Jamie Raskin, Deborah Ross, Gregorio Kilili Camacho Sablan, Linda Sánchez, Mary Gay Scanlon, Jan Schakowsky, Adam Schiff, Terri Sewell, Mikie Sherrill, Elissa Slotkin, Hayley Stevens, Marilyn Strickland, Mark Takano, Rashida Tlaib, Jill Tokuda, Ritchie Torres (NY), Lori Trahan, Juan Vargas, Marc Veasey, Nydia Velázquez, Bonnie Watson Coleman, Jennifer Wexton, Susan Wild, and Nikema Williams.
In addition to Kaine, Smith, and Warren, the letter was signed by Senators Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), John Fetterman (D-PA), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Martin Heinrich (D-NM), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Mark Kelly (D-AZ), Angus King (I-ME), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Ben Ray Luján (D-NM), Ed Markey (D-MA), Bob Menendez (D-NJ), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Chris Murphy (D-CT), Patty Murray (D-WA), Alex Padilla (D-CA), Jack Reed (D-RI), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Mark Warner (D-VA), Rev. Raphael Warnock (D-GA), Peter Welch (D-VT), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), and Ron Wyden (D-OR).
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