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New bill aims to reduce rising childcare costs for parents
Democrat Senator Tim Kaine of Virginia and Republican Senator Katie Britt of Alabama have introduced two bipartisan bills to make childcare more accessible and affordable. FOX 5's Homa Bash has the details.
WASHINGTON - Over the last three decades, childcare costs have increased 220 percent and wages have simply not kept up.
On Wednesday, Democratic Senator Tim Kaine of Virginia and Republican Senator Katie Britt of Alabama introduced two bipartisan bills to make childcare more accessible and affordable.
Britt said that as a mother of two, she's seen firsthand the challenges of raising children in America.
"We had to spend an astronomical amount of money to send our daughter and our son to childcare. I felt like we were actually writing checks for their college tuition and not for their childcare. Today, these costs are even higher," Britt said.
The two pieces of legislation are called the Child Care Availability and Affordability Act and the Child Care Workforce Act.
They will essentially update the tax code to work in favor of working parents - particularly those in the lower and middle classes who do not qualify for federal funding.
"Our bill is proof that Congress can lower the cost of childcare while growing opportunities without creating an entitlement," Britt said. "It is pro-family, pro-growth, common sense solution that puts parents back in the driver's seat and actually achieves real results."
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The legislation is being widely applauded by childcare advocacy groups for taking a step in the right direction.
Cindy Lehnhoff is the director of the National Childcare Association and worked for more than 35 years as a childcare provider.
"Ultimately, we saw a problem 10 years ago. And the pandemic just made it worse. And now the economy and the inflation that we're experiencing has just made it catastrophic," Lehnhoff said.
The bills would increase the size of the child and dependent care tax credit and make it refundable for the first time ever.
They also allow families to deduct 50 percent more in expenses, up to $7,500. It expands the maximum child-dependent care tax credit from $3,000 to $5,000 for families with one child and from $4,000 to $8,000 for families with two or more kids
They're planning to incentivize businesses who help pay for or provide childcare for employees, as well as a pilot program that would pay childcare workers a higher wage. Post-pandemic, childcare centers have space to take in more kids but oftentimes, do not have the staff to do so.
"The bottom line is, this isn't going to take the issue away. but it is going to begin to help support people that right now, have no support," Lehnhoff added.
Britt mentioned that in Alabama, a family with one child pays roughly $10,000 a year in childcare.
In D.C., Maryland and Virginia, that cost is much, much higher. One recent report puts the number at nearly $25,000 a year for one toddler in daycare in D.C.