Child Care Receives Major Attention this Week

This week we saw major action in Congress to address the growing child care crisis that is devastating communities across the country. Recently released data paints a bleak picture of the future of child care in America if Congress does not pass dedicated relief through a child care stabilization fund.

Here’s a look at recent news coverage and analysis of the nation’s child care crisis.

BACK TO WORK CHILD CARE GRANTS ACT: This week, Senators Joni Ernst (R-IA) and Lamar Alexander (R-TN), chairman of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP), unveiled the Back to Work Child Care Grants Act of 2020, which would provide dedicated economic assistance to stabilize the child care industry and resources to child care providers amid the COVID-19 crisis.

41 GOP LAWMAKERS CALL FOR CHILD CARE RELIEF: Highlighting the importance of child care access across the country, Republican lawmakers in the House sent a letter to Congressional leaders this week calling for dedicated federal relief for child care providers and businesses to stabilize an industry that has been devastated by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Read the full letter here.

CHAMBER MAKES CHILD CARE TOP PRIORITY: In a letter to President Donald Trump, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, and Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, the United States Chamber of Commerce included child care in its list of critical areas in need of federal relief as the nation’s economy recovers from the coronavirus pandemic. Read the letter from the Chamber of Commerce, which represents companies of all sizes across every sector of the economy here.

EARLY EDUCATORS APPRENTICESHIP ACT: Congressman Brett Guthrie (R-KY) and Congresswoman Susan Wild (D-PA) introduced the bipartisan Early Educators Apprenticeship Act which would establish a three-year grant through the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act for states to develop, administer, and evaluate a registered apprenticeship program that equips apprentices with the knowledge, skills, and competencies required to work in early childhood education (ECE). Companion legislation was introduced earlier this year in the Senate by Senators Todd Young (R-IN), Bob Casey (D-PA), and Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV).

HOUSE APPROPRIATORS PASS EARLY LEARNING FUNDING: Early this week, the House Appropriations Committee voted to pass the FY2021 Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education (LHHS) appropriations bill, which includes a $100 million funding increase for the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) program, $150 million funding increase for Head Start and Early Head Start, and $25 million funding increase for Preschool Development Grant Birth through Five (PDG B-5).

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: The Child Care Relief campaign hosted a bipartisan Congressional briefing on the child care crisis caused by the coronavirus pandemic. The briefing included presentations from child care advocates, early learning and care experts, and business leaders who shared the critical need for Congress to act to stabilize and protect the child care industry. Watch the briefing online here.

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