OPINION: Helping Families Afford Childcare is Critical For Strong Communities

Spikes in childcare costs, like those impacting just about every other good and service in New York, have created economic hardship for families all over the state. These challenges have forced many families to pass up earnings opportunities in order to care for their children, and for too many families, those missing wages are the difference between comfort and struggle. This is bad for families, bad for our communities, and bad for New York. Adequate childcare provides children with a safe and nurturing environment while allowing working parents to continue their careers. Now that we have entered summer, these issues take on even greater significance as parents no longer benefit from school-provided care and meals. During these months, finding affordable care for working parents has become increasingly difficult as service providers face their own challenges like middling wages and staffing shortages. Again, these issues are exacerbated by an influx in demand during the non-school months. The Assembly Minority Conference has been working hard to address this discrepancy, and for that reason, our membership developed the “A Blueprint for Childcare (ABC) Plan,” which is a package of proposals that would save families an average of about $2,300 a year. While some helpful measures were passed earlier this year, I do not believe the state has gone far enough to help those struggling with childcare costs. And doing so has never been so important. Even before inflation peaked, 60 percent of parents surveyed said the cost of programs was the top reason for not enrolling their child in after school care. Nearly 40 percent said there were no spaces available in their preferred program. Through a combination of tax incentives, expanded access to education and enhanced provider options, our conference believes we can alleviate a lot of pressure preventing families from achieving their maximum earning potential. Those proposals include: •​ Increasing the State Earned Income Tax Credit amount from 30 percent to 45 percent (A.9258, Ra); •​ Increasing the Empire State Child Credit amount to 45 percent of the federal child tax credit amount (A.9257, Ra); •​ Creating a new Childcare Facility Capital Improvement Tax Credit to help childcare providers enhance and update facilities (A.9264, Ra); and •​ Increasing provider options by adopting rules and regulations that would establish a model for childcare that includes hours outside of traditional day care models such as nights and weekends (A.9126, Jensen). There are significant benefits to making these changes. These measures provide critical relief to struggling families while allowing parents to find access to quality programs and services during their children’s formative years. Further still, if we empower families by making it easier for them to earn, we can help them become less dependent on expensive social services. Everyone wins when we make it easier for families to afford necessities. For many, childcare is as essential as gas, groceries, and housing. I will continue looking for ways to make it easier on these struggling families to afford all of those things. Unfortunately, in New York, we still have a lot of work to do.        

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William (Will) A. Barclay, 55, Republican, is the New York Assembly minority leader and represents the 120th New York Assembly District, which encompasses all of Oswego County, as well as parts of Jefferson and Cayuga counties.