FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MEDIA CONTACT
Joe Weedon
jweedon@zerotothree.org
(202) 277-9410
WASHINGTON, DC, August 14, 2023 – Today, Miriam Calderón, Chief Policy Officer at ZERO TO THREE, called on Congress to prioritize adding $16 billion for child care to the emergency supplemental following the Biden administration’s release of emergency aid priorities to Congress.
“Families cannot afford to pay more for child care. Providers cannot afford to stay open. The economy can’t run if workers don’t have child care. Congress must take swift action to prevent dire consequences for the child care sector. Without support, child care facilities across the country will be forced to close or raise their rates beyond parents’ reach.
“The pandemic increased the challenges families face in finding any kind of child care, much less high quality. A timely infusion of federal funds helped the sector hang on through the pandemic, but it’s coming to an end. Families already are spending larger and larger portions of their income on child care. Wait lists for care have grown to many months or even years. Child care providers face acute staffing shortages that will only get worse if Congress does not act quickly to support child care providers’ ability to recruit and retain early educators by helping them compensate employees fairly for the important work that they do.
“Our policymakers have failed to deliver what babies, families, and early educators need. Overall, spending on children ages zero to three makes up a very small fraction of the federal budget and eighty-seven percent of parents with infants and toddlers say that addressing the needs of children and families should be either a top or important priority this budget cycle.
“Federal investments in high-quality child care have the potential to address long-standing inequities and support the strong early foundation babies and toddlers need for success in school and as adults. We are counting on Congress – Republicans and Democrats – to listen to families and early childhood professionals that want their elected leaders to focus on fixing child care and act quickly to include $16B in the emergency funding package.”
About ZERO TO THREE
ZERO TO THREE works to ensure all babies and toddlers benefit from the family and community connections critical to their well-being and development. Since 1977, the organization has advanced the proven power of nurturing relationships by transforming the science of early childhood into helpful resources, practical tools and responsive policies for millions of parents, professionals, and policymakers.
