Learning Care Group endorses bipartisan senate bills to make child care more affordable

Two bills, introduced by U.S. Senators Katie Britt (R-Ala.) and Tim Kaine (D-Va.), will make child care more affordable by growing tax credits available to employers and working families

NOVI, MI – Today, Learning Care Group announced its endorsement of the Child Care Availability and Affordability Act and the Child Care Workforce Act. Both will help lower child care costs for families, increase compensation for early childhood educators and school staff and make it easier for employers to invest in their workforce through child care employee benefits.

“We’re proud to support a bipartisan effort that represents meaningful progress,” said Learning Care Group CEO Mark Bierley. “Together, these bills take a significant step in addressing a child care crisis that has overwhelmed us for far too long.”

The Child Care Availability and Affordability Act will work to make child care more affordable by:

• Increasing the size of the Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit (CDCTC) and making it refundable, allowing lower income working families with out-of-pocket child care expenses to benefit from the credit for the first time. The proposal substantially expands the maximum CDCTC to $2,500 for families with one child and $4,000 for families with two or more children.
• Crucially bolstering the underutilized Employer-Provided Child Care Tax Credit—commonly referred to as 45F—to encourage businesses to provide child care to their employees. The Kaine-Britt plan would increase the maximum credit from $150,000 to $500,000, and the percentage of expenses covered from 25% to 50%. The legislation also includes a larger incentive for small businesses—a maximum credit of $600,000—and allows for joint applications for groups of small businesses who want to pool resources.

The Child Care Workforce Act will make it easier to access child care by establishing a competitive grant program for states, localities, Tribes, and Tribal organizations that are interested in adopting or expanding pay supplement programs for child care workers to increase supply and reduce turnover. 

• Grantees that will provide supplements, paid out at least quarterly, directly to both home-based and center-based licensed child care providers licensed by the state.
• A required evaluation of impacts on turnover, quality of child care, availability of affordable childcare, and alleviating the financial burden on child care providers. Model programs exist in Virginia, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Maine, and the District of Columbia, with evaluations demonstrating large effects on the supply of workers, educator turnover, and worker well-being and satisfaction. 

More information about the Child Care Availability and Affordability Act and the Child Care Workforce Act can be found here and here. 

About Learning Care Group, Inc.

Learning Care Group (LCG) is the second-largest for-profit early education and child care provider in North America and a leader in employer-sponsored solutions that meet the needs of organizations and their working families. Headquartered in Novi, Michigan, LCG provides quality care and early learning for children 6 weeks to 12 years through 11 unique brands. Supporting families and inspiring children to love learning for more than 50 years, LCG operates 1,090+ schools in 39 states and enables child development through a comprehensive, research-based curriculum in a safe, nurturing, fun school environment. LCG is committed to transforming the child care industry, exceeding its partners’ expectations, and enhancing the way children learn and grow every day.