Miller, Sánchez Introduce Bipartisan Child Care Affordability Legislation
Washington, D.C. – This week, Reps. Miller (R-WV) and Sánchez (D-CA) introduced the Child Care Supply Tax Credit Act. This bipartisan legislation establishes a tax credit to help child care providers hire and retain highly qualified staff, addressing the nationwide child care shortage that continues to impact families across the country.
“Parents across the country continue to struggle with the rising costs of child care due to the industry’s workforce shortage. Attractive wages attract employees, and a large part of the cost of retaining the staff needed to adequately and safely care for the children is often passed on from the provider to the parents. Building on the increased Child Tax Credit and expansion of the Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit that were secured by the passage of the Working Families Tax Cuts last summer, I am happy to join my colleagues Rep. Sánchez and Senators Justice and Warner in introducing the Child Care Supply Tax Credit Act to go one step further in addressing rising childcare costs. By providing a tax credit to assist our providers in paying their staff, we can limit the costs being passed on to parents,” said Congresswoman Miller.
“It’s ridiculous that it can be cheaper to send a child to college than to preschool. If we’re serious about supporting working families, we need to make child care more affordable and accessible. Our bill will help providers hire and retain qualified staff, so parents have reliable options for their young children without paying higher prices,” said Congresswoman Sánchez.
Senators Jim Justice (R-WV) and Mark R. Warner (D-VA) introduced companion legislation in the Senate last year.
“Childcare providers simply can’t afford to pay their workers enough without passing those high costs on to parents. Families in West Virginia and across the country are spending thousands of dollars just to secure reliable childcare – it must be addressed. By creating a targeted tax credit tied directly to caregiver wages, we can pay the people who take care of our kids what they deserve while giving our hard-working families some breathing room,” said Senator Jim Justice.
“From health care premiums to groceries to utility bills, life is only getting more and more expensive for American families, and for many, the math simply doesn’t work without affordable child care. Child care is the foundation that allows parents to earn a living while providing kids with the head start they deserve. I’m proud to introduce this bipartisan legislation to address the workforce challenges contributing to our nation’s child care crisis,” said Senator Mark Warner.
A copy of the bill text can be found here.
Background:
- Child care providers across the nation are facing persistent resource constraints that have limited their ability to offer competitive wages.
- The recruitment and retention of qualified child care staff has become increasingly challenging, leading to workforce shortages that have, in some cases, caused facility closures.
- In West Virginia, families need an additional 20,000 childcare spots.
The Child Care Supply Tax Credit Act creates a new tax credit for eligible childcare providers to help offset the cost of employee wages, allowing providers to increase worker wages, retain talent, and increase childcare supply.
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