Trone, Over 110 House, Senate Leaders Introduce Bill to Extend Child Care Funding as Funding Cliff Looms
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 18, 2023
Contact: Sasha Galbreath, Sasha.Galbreath@mail.house.gov
Trone, Over 110 House, Senate Leaders Introduce Bill to Extend Child Care Funding as Funding Cliff Looms
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Congressman David Trone (D-MD) joined over 110 House and Senate members in introducing the Child Care Stabilization Act to extend vital federal child care stabilization funding — which is set to expire at the end of this month — and ensure that child care providers can keep their doors open and continue serving children and families in every part of the country.
When the pandemic pushed the already-fragile child care sector to the brink of collapse, Congress responded by delivering historic federal investments to prevent families from losing their child care — including $24 billion in child care stabilization funding. The funding has made an enormous difference for families across the country — keeping 220,000 child care providers afloat over the last few years and saving child care slots for up to 10 million children nationwide — but it is set to run out on September 30, 2023, threatening to once again push the sector to the brink, with dire consequences for American families and our nation’s economy.
The Child Care Stabilization Act would prevent a potential crisis when funding expires at the end of the month by providing $16 billion in mandatory funding each year for the next five years to continue the successful Child Care Stabilization Grant program. This investment would ensure child care providers continue to receive a stable and reliable source of funding to help them deliver high-quality and affordable child care for working families across the country.
“Congress must step up and look out for the folks we’ve sworn to serve. During the pandemic, Democrats made sure that families were taken care of through programs like these, as well as the Child Tax Credit, which effectively cut child poverty in half,” said Congressman Trone, Member of the House Appropriations Committee. “As Republicans in leadership struggle to pass a government funding bill, Maryland families should not bear the brunt of a government shutdown. That’s just reprehensible, and I’m fighting tooth and nail in Congress to prevent that from happening.”
If funding for the child care sector isn’t extended, families, providers, and the economy will be adversely affected. A May report from the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee on child care funding shows that without continued stabilization funding, child care costs could rise, fewer children might be served, and already underpaid child care workers might face wage cuts.
A separate analysis from The Century Foundation warns that if Congress does not provide additional funds, up to a third of child care programs may close – impacting 3.2 million children and 232,000 jobs, resulting in a $10.6 billion annual economic loss. Additionally, the report finds that millions of parents will likely leave the workforce or reduce their hours, leading to a $9 billion yearly reduction in earnings.
35 Senators are original cosponsors of the legislation, including: Senators Murray, Sanders, Schumer, Baldwin, Blumenthal, Booker, Brown, Cardin, Casey, Cortez Masto, Duckworth, Durbin, Fetterman, Gillibrand, Heinrich, Hirono, Kaine, King, Klobuchar, Luján, Markey, Menendez, Merkley, Murphy, Padilla, Reed, Shaheen, Smith, Stabenow, Van Hollen, Warnock, Warren, Welch, Whitehouse, and Wyden.
78 Representatives are original cosponsors of the legislation, including Representatives Katherine Clark, Rosa DeLauro, Bobby Scott, Suzanne Bonamici, Jamaal Bowman, Jimmy Gomez, Sara Jacobs, Mikie Sherrill, Alma Adams, Becca Balint, Nanette Diaz Barragán, Shontel Brown, Julia Brownley, Nikki Budzinski, Cori Bush, Yadira Caraveo, Salud Carbajal, Troy Carter, Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, Yvette Clarke, Gerald Connolly, Angie Craig, Jasmine Crockett, Henry Cuellar, Danny Davis, Donald Davis, Veronica Escobar, Lois Frankel, Josh Gottheimer, Raúl Grijalva, Jahana Hayes, Eleanor Holmes Norton, Sheila Jackson Lee, Pramila Jayapal, Andy Kim, Annie Kuster, Greg Landsman, Barbara Lee, Zoe Lofgren, Stephen Lynch, Seth Magaziner, Kathy Manning, Lucy McBath, Jennifer McClellan, Betty McCollum, Morgan McGarvey, Rob Menendez, Gwen Moore, Jared Moskowitz, Kevin Mullin, Jerrold Nadler, Richard Neal, Donald Norcross, Scott Peters, Brittany Pettersen, Chellie Pingree, Mark Pocan, Katie Porter, Ayanna Pressley, Jamie Raskin, Deborah Ross, Gregorio Kilili Camacho Sablan, Andrea Salinas, John Sarbanes, Mary Gay Scanlon, Jan Schakowsky, Adam Schiff, Terri Sewell, Mark Takano, Rashida Tlaib, Jill Tokuda, Paul Tonko, Lori Trahan, David Trone, Bonnie Watson Coleman, Jennifer Wexton, Susan Wild, and Nikema Williams.
The Child Care Stabilization Act is endorsed by: National Women’s Law Center (NWLC), Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP), ZERO TO THREE, National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), Children’s Defense Fund, Save the Children, Service Employees International Union (SEIU), American Federation of Teachers (AFT), National Association for Family Child Care, Child Care for Every Family Network, Family Values at Work, Campaign for a Family Friendly Economy, MomsRising/MamasConPoder, Oxfam America, All Our Kin, Community Change Action, Prevent Child Abuse America, American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), AFL-CIO, Small Business Majority, First Focus Campaign for Children, Parents Together Action, Prevent Child Abuse America, United Parent Leaders Action Network (UPLAN), YWCA-USA.
The full bill text is available here.
Congressman David Trone was elected to the House of Representatives in November 2018 to serve the 6th District of Maryland, which includes all or part of Montgomery, Frederick, Washington, Allegany, and Garrett Counties. Trone serves on the Appropriations, Budget, and Joint Economic Committees in the 118th Congress. In Congress, Trone is fighting to make progress on issues that matter to Marylanders.
Follow Congressman Trone at @RepDavidTrone for updates on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.
###
