Shaheen Speaks Out on Senate Floor in Support of Child Care Stabilization Grants in Supplemental Funding Request

Watch Shaheen’s remarks in full here.

(Washington, DC) — Today, U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) spoke on the Senate floor urging Congress to pass President Biden’s request for $16 billion to support child care stabilization grants in the domestic supplemental funding request. In 2021, Senator Shaheen led the effort to deliver $77 million in child care relief funding to the State of New Hampshire through the American Rescue Plan. Since then, she has worked to hold the State accountable for delays in distributing some of those federal funds and helped deliver grants throughout the state, especially in communities that lack access to child care facilities.

The Administration’s domestic supplemental request includes $16 billion for the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) for child care stabilization grants, which would effectively extend the American Rescue Plan’s child care stabilization program for one additional year to provide more families with access to child care.

Key Quotes:

• “Across the country, working families are facing impossible choices created by the lack of access to child care. Even before the COVID pandemic, families in my home state of New Hampshire and elsewhere have struggled to access affordable child care and they were often faced with shortages of available child care slots.”
• “I’ve visited child care centers across my state—from Littleton to Rochester and Manchester to Keene—and have seen closed classrooms and strained facilities in every corner of the Granite State. […] [Democrats] worked to deliver more than $50 billion dollars in federal funding for child care during the pandemic. […] Now with that relief funding running out, child care providers are again facing an existential crisis.”

• “I'm disappointed to say that in my state of New Hampshire, they delayed the distribution of that long-term funding stream, which made the last two years unnecessarily burdensome for families and child care providers across New Hampshire. In fact, I’m hearing from providers who are in desperate need of additional support to avoid closing classrooms.”

• “I'm really pleased that the President included $16 billion for support for child care in his domestic supplemental appropriations request to Congress, and we need to act as soon as possible to provide this critical funding.”

• “It’s vital for our economy as a whole. Right now, the repercussions of the child care crisis are being felt across every sector of our economy. I’ve heard from every industry across New Hampshire, including manufacturing, health care, nonprofits and tourism, that the child care crisis has hamstrung their ability to continue growing their operations.”

• “Families across America are relying on us to help child care providers stay open and provide affordable care options. This federal funding would improve their lives while boosting our economy by helping parents keep their jobs or return to work.”

Remarks as prepared can be found below.

I rise today to join my colleagues in calling on Congress to provide urgently needed resources to address the current child care crisis.

Across the country, working families are facing impossible choices created by the lack of access to child care.

Even before the COVID pandemic, families in my home state of New Hampshire and elsewhere struggled to access affordable child care and were often faced with shortages of available child care slots.

The pandemic exacerbated these challenges—causing child care centers across the Granite State to close and forcing countless families to scramble for alternatives.

The closure of a child care provider can result in higher costs for families or require a parent to leave the workforce altogether.

This crisis over the past several years has underscored just how vital child care is to our workforce, families and the overall economic success of our communities.

Since 2019, New Hampshire has lost nearly 1,500 child care slots as dozens of child care centers have closed their doors, straining countless families and communities.

I’ve visited child care centers across my state—from Littleton to Rochester and Manchester to Keene—and have seen closed classrooms and strained facilities in every corner of the Granite State.

In October 2020, New Hampshire had only half the licensed capacity necessary to serve children under the age of six in need of care.

Only half.

And in just one county—Coos County in the North Country—three child care centers were forced to close since January of this year.

This is why I fought to deliver more than $50 billion dollars in federal funding for child care during the pandemic.

This funding was critical for allowing providers to keep their doors open, improving child care affordability, expanding access to high-quality child care, increasing wages for child care workers and building the supply of child care in states like mine.

And now, with that relief funding running out, child care providers are again facing an existential crisis.

Congress intentionally designed child care relief to accomplish two goals:

Number one: provide direct relief to providers to stabilize the sector…

And number two: to provide states with the resources to make long-term investments.

Disappointingly, the state of New Hampshire delayed the distribution of the long-term funding streams, which made the last two years unnecessarily burdensome for families and child care providers across the state.

In fact, I’m hearing from providers in New Hampshire who are in desperate need of additional support to avoid closing classrooms.

I am glad that the President included $16 billion for support for child care in his domestic supplemental appropriations request to Congress.

We need to act as soon as possible to provide this critical funding.

Getting this relief to providers is particularly important given the appalling delays we have seen in New Hampshire over the distribution of other child care funds.

We must act swiftly to stabilize the child care industry that our families, workforce, communities and economies rely on.

The value of securing access to affordable, high quality child care goes beyond the value to each individual American family: it’s vital for our economy as a whole.

Right now, the repercussions of the child care crisis are being felt across every sector of our economy.

I’ve heard from every industry across New Hampshire, including manufacturing, health care, nonprofits and tourism, that the child care crisis has hamstrung their ability to continue growing their operations.

The lack of accessible child care options often keeps parents out of the workforce and further strains family budgets, at a time when many have faced serious economic pressures.

Over the summer, I traveled up to Coos County and I heard from Michael, whose son’s child care center had recently closed.

At the time of the closure, the nearest center with open slots was more than an hour away, leaving Michael and his wife, like many families across the state, to do their best to keep their jobs without local and reliable child care.

Their community and local economy can’t afford for Michael or his wife, who is a critical health care worker, to leave the workforce.

Women disproportionately shoulder child care responsibilities and failing to leverage these critical federal child care resources will only further force women to leave the workforce.

However, there is some good news here: I’m pleased to share that my office was able to connect Michael’s family with local providers and advocates and they now have child care.

But it shouldn’t be this hard.

And it shouldn’t take the involvement of a U.S. Senator to make sure that family has reliable, local child care.

New Hampshire’s families should have not to choose between their children and their jobs, and New Hampshire’s businesses should not have to face additional struggles in finding qualified workers.

This is why Congress must act quickly to provide President Biden’s request for $16 billion for child care stabilization grants.

Families across America are relying on us to help child care providers stay open and provide affordable care options.

This federal funding would improve their lives while boosting our economy by helping parents keep their jobs or return to work.

I appreciate my colleagues who are joining me today to speak out about the importance of providing this funding as soon as possible.

I hope we can count on the Senate to pass this critical relief funding soon.

Senator Shaheen has been a leader in advocating for more accessible and affordable child care. Recently, she helped introduce the Child Care Stabilization Act to provide additional federal child care stabilization funding—which was provided in the American Rescue Plan—and ensure that child care providers can keep their doors open and continue serving children and families in every part of the country. Shaheen joined Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) to introduce the Child Care for Working Families Act, which would provide affordable child care for all working families, expand access to preschool programs and increase wages for early childhood workers. She also joined U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Dan Sullivan (R-AK) in reintroducing the Childcare Workforce and Facilities Act to address the national shortage of affordable, quality child care, especially in rural communities. In the government funding bill for fiscal year (FY) 2023, Senator Shaheen worked to include a $1.86 billion increase to $8.02 billion for Childcare and Development Block Grants to states, as well as a $960 million increase to Head Start, funding the program at nearly $12 billion for FY 2023. The law additionally includes an increase of $25 million to $315 million for Preschool Development Grants.

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