Washington, D.C. - Congressman Tom Emmer (MN-06) and Congressman Rodney Davis (IL-13) co-led a letter to House leadership advocating for support for child care providers. 

Congressman Emmer wrote to Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy in support of child care providers, both home-based and center-based, who are in need of timely and targeted assistance due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

"Minnesota families rely on child care providers to be able to go to their jobs. As our economy begins to rebound and Americans return to work, child care providers will be more critical to working families than ever," said Emmer. "This pandemic has hit these providers hard. With an increased need for personal protective equipment and less children attending school, child care providers have struggled to stay open. These providers offer an essential service and are vital to our economic recovery. I urge all my colleagues to ensure they are supported during this time." 

"Many Illinois families can only return to work if they have access to affordable child care,” said Davis. “The unfortunate reality is that state and local government mandates geared towards mitigating the spread of COVID-19 have decimated child care providers. That’s why we need to do everything we can to make sure child care providers can stay afloat, otherwise our economy will be permanently held back and families can’t return to work. I will continue to urge Congressional leaders to make federal funding for local child care providers a top priority as we consider additional COVID-19 relief legislation."

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act offered child care providers and their employees some relief through the Paycheck Protection Program and supplemental funding through the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) program. However, the Bipartisan Policy Center has reported that 43% of Americans working remotely said they currently need child care and 49% of Americans working in-person need formal child care. Currently, one-third (34%) of parents who are working remotely are alternating work hours with someone else in their household to care for their children. These numbers show a staggering need for child care facilities to support the American workforce. 

Read the letter here. 

Learn more about Rep. Emmer’s resource page for parents and their families here.