Reed, Whitehouse reintroduce child care bill

WASHINGTON, D.C. (WLNE) — Sens. Jack Reed and Sheldon Whitehouse have reintroduce the Child Care for Working Families Act to Congress.

The two lawmakers, alongside Washington Senator Patty Murray, aims to help families across the country afford child care.

The legislation seeks to alleviate the high cost of child care for working families, provide families with more flexible options for high-quality, affordable child care, and boost wages for early childhood workers, they said.

“Working parents need access to high-quality, affordable child care that meets their needs,” Reed said. “Making child care more accessible and affordable is critical to families, communities, businesses, and our shared economic future.”

The three senators have been pushing for the a similar bill to be passed since 2017.

Under the legislation, the typical family in America will pay no more than $10 a day for child care, they said.

“When we invest in affordable, high-quality child care, we are investing in the strength of our economy,” Whitehouse said. “Our legislation will ensure that more families in Rhode Island have access to child care while making sure early childhood educators are compensated fairly for their hard work.”