Warren, Smith Applaud President-elect Biden's Call for Emergency Child Care Aid in COVID-19 Rescue Plan
Washington, DC - United States Senators Elizabeth Warren
(D-Mass.), and Tina Smith (D-Minn.), members of the Senate Health, Education,
Labor, and Pensions Committee (HELP), issued the following statement regarding
the child care provisions included in President-elect Biden's American
Rescue Plan:
"Right now, child care providers are struggling to keep their doors open while a pandemic and economic crisis devastate a system that was already deeply broken. That is why we are glad that President-elect Biden has included strong support for child care in his COVID-19 relief plan, providing the immediate relief that American families and child care providers desperately need," said the lawmakers.
President-elect Biden's American Rescue Plan calls for a $40 billion investment in child care, including a $25 billion emergency stabilization fund and $15 billion for Child Care & Development Block Grant (CCDBG). Combined with the $10 billion in child care funds from the December COVID-19 relief bill, the total amount equals the $50 billion for which Senators Warren and Smith have been advocating.
Since the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreak, Senators Warren and Smith have been calling for immediate support for the child care industry:
- In August, Senators Warren and Smith called on Senate leadership to prioritize the inclusion of their plan for a $50 billion child care bailout in the next COVID-19 relief package.
- In May, Senator Warren joined Representatives Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.), Bobby Scott (D-Va.), and Senators Patty Murray (D-Wash.) and Tina Smith (D-Minn.), in introducing the Child Care is Essential Act, which would create a $50 billion Child Care Stabilization Fund within the existing Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) program.
- In April, Senator Warren and Representative Khanna (D-Calif.) called for essential workers to be among the beneficiaries of child care investments in the introduction of their Essential Workers Bill of Rights.
- In a New York Times op-ed published in July, Senator Warren reiterated the need to secure child care funds and also called for "long-term investments so more families can find affordable, high-quality, and safe care in the future."
- In April, Senators Warren and Smith announced their plan for a $50 billion child care bailout.
- In March, Senators Warren and Smith led their colleagues in urging Senate leadership to include support for the child care sector in the COVID-19 relief package that became the CARES Act.
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