Ernst Pushes to Lower Costs for Child Care on Behalf of Iowa Families
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) joined her colleagues to introduce the bipartisan Child Care Availability and Affordability Act to make child care more affordable and accessible for Iowa families.
“When traveling River to River across Iowa, I consistently hear about the struggles that families face in finding and affording high-quality child care,” said Ernst. “The Child Care Availability and Affordability Act will help lower costs for hardworking Iowans and encourage businesses to invest in accessible child care options to decrease the burden on working parents.”
“Access to affordable, high-quality child care is important to supporting Iowa’s workforce and economic growth. The Child Care Availability and Affordability Act takes meaningful steps to help employers invest in child care solutions and supports working families. We appreciate Senator Ernst and her colleagues for advancing bipartisan solutions that benefit both businesses and families across our state," said Tiffany Tauscheck, President & CEO of the Greater Des Moines Partnership.
“For quite some time, we have consistently heard from our membership that access to childcare has become a significant impediment to hiring a skilled workforce. For this reason, we applaud the effort to address this challenge and support the Childcare Availability and Affordability Act currently pending in Congress,” said Barbara Sloniker, Executive Vice President of the Siouxland Chamber of Commerce.
Read the bill here.
Background:
Ernst has been a strong advocate for increasing access to affordable, high-quality child care in Iowa.
While traveling River to River across the state, Ernst visits child care centers to bring Iowans’ voices to Washington.
Ernst led the bipartisan Small Business Child Care Investment Act that would allow non-profit child care providers, including religious organizations, to participate in the Small Business Administration (SBA) loan programs, which passed through the U.S. Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee last month.
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