Help Save Georgia’s Child Care
Georgia’s child care industry needs more substantial investment if it is to weather the current pandemic. We welcome Mindy Binderman, executive director with GEEARS: Georgia Early Education Alliance for Ready Students, as our first guest contributor to the Georgia Parent Power blog. Her article below explains how you can help sustain Georgia’s child care industry right NOW as well as why the additional investment is needed.
Please contact Georgia’s congress members today before it is too late.
Help Save Georgia’s Child Care
Congress is back from recess and expected to move quickly on the next stimulus package. Now is the time for Congress to make a substantial investment in the child care industry to prevent its collapse. Without significant, dedicated funding to sustain the industry through the COVID-19 crisis, parents will be unable to return to work, children will miss out on the benefits of safe and reliable early learning, and the nation’s economic recovery will be considerably stunted.
Join GEEARS and our national partners in asking Georgia’s members of Congress for at least $50 billion in total dedicated funding to child care in Congress’ next round of stimulus funds.
Click here to contacts your legislators now.
While prior federal relief packages included some modest funding for child care, without additional action from Congress, Georgia’s families may face a complete lack of child care when the crisis abates. The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated many of the problems already facing the child care industry. Families have long struggled to access affordable high-quality options, and providers have faced slim profit margins and precarious financial situations.
Whether remaining open or temporarily closed, child care programs face mounting challenges—including fluctuating attendance, ballooning operating costs, inconsistent revenue, and new expenses related to health and safety—that may prevent them from serving families, both in the immediate future as well as when the crisis subsides. An analysis by the Center for American Progress found that without additional financial assistance, 50% of the country’s child care centers will close permanently, leading to a loss of 4.5 million child care slots.
Congress is returning from recess TODAY and is expected to move quickly on passing the next stimulus package. Your members of Congress need to hear from you!
Click here to contact your U.S. Representative and Senators to ask them for at least $50 billion in dedicated funding for child care to help stabilize the industry financially and support providers in safely serving children as their parents go back to work.
