Skip to content

January 31, 2025

King Joins Bipartisan Bill to Lower Child Care Costs and Address Shortage of Affordable Child Care

WASHINGTON, D.C.—U.S. Senator Angus King (I-ME) is joining bipartisan legislation to lower child care costs and address the nationwide shortage of affordable child care. The Child Care Workforce and Facilities Act would provide competitive grants for states to train child care workers and build or renovate child care facilities.

Families across the country are struggling to access available child care, with rural communities increasingly becoming “child care deserts” due to the noticeable decline in the number of child care providers. According to the Governor’s office, Maine has seen a 39% drop in the number of family childcare providers since 2013, significantly affecting the most rural communities.

“Affordable and accessible child care is one of the most pressing needs for working families in Maine and across the nation,” said Senator King. “The bipartisan Child Care Workforce and Facilities Act would provide important grant funding to states like Maine to train additional child care workers and build or renovate new child care facilities. When families have access to care, they are able to succeed both at home and in their professional careers. Child care is more than a household priority; child care means business!”

The Child Care Workforce and Facilities Act would:

  • Address the shortage of affordable child care and qualified child care professionals, particularly in rural areas; 
  • Provide competitive grants to states to support the education, training, or retention of the child care workforce;
  • Provide competitive grants to states to build, renovate, and expand child care facilities in areas experiencing shortages; 
  • Require grant applicants to demonstrate how their projects would increase the availability and affordability of quality child care, and help child care workers continue advance their careers; and 
  • Enhance retention and compensation of quality child care professionals.

The legislation is cosponsored by Senators Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Dan Sullivan (R-AK), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), and Whitehouse (D-RI).

Senator King has long worked to expand access to child care. He secured millions to improve child care services in the 2022 and 2023 omnibus appropriations bills, and worked to authorize the planning and development of a new child development center at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard. He is also the cosponsor of the Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit Enhancement Act, which would permanently expand the Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit that helps households offset their child care costs.

###


Next Article » « Previous Article