Members of Congress have the opportunity to increase funding for the child care system, but they need to hear from you!

Dear [ Decision Maker ] ,

I am a family child care provider and a member of AFSCME/Child Care Providers Together. Family child care providers in our state and across the country have been organizing so that we can address ways to strengthen the early childhood education field.

I am writing to strongly urge you to support a $720 million increase for the Child Care Development Block Grant in the FY 2008 Labor-HHS-Education Appropriations bill. Increasing the Block Grant will allow more low-income families to secure a foothold in the workforce. Access to affordable, high-quality child care is often the biggest barrier to entering the workforce, increasing the block grant will go a long way in removing that barrier. Like all families they need to be confident that their children are well cared for while they work or go to school.

This funding allows states to provide equal access to child care so that low-income working families can enter and stay in the workforce and off of public assistance. Funding for these critical programs has been frozen for six years, resulting in hundreds of thousands of children losing assistance since 2000. Only one out of seven children eligible for subsidized child care actually receives assistance, meaning affordable child care is often unavailable for the families who need it the most.

It is time to invest in our nation's children and increase funding for the Child Care Development Block grant. Please, I urge you to support this important funding when it comes up for consideration in the subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education.

Sincerely,

Campaign Launched:
May 15, 2007