This is urgent. North Carolina is facing a child care emergency, and time is rapidly running out! Federal emergency child care compensation funds run out on June 30th, and our state’s child care system is at risk.
Without state investment to replace those funds, our state’s child care system will be facing a crisis where parent fees will go up and teacher wages will go down, resulting in a mass exodus of teachers who can earn more working in fast food, retail, and similar industries.
Fewer teachers will mean classroom and center closures and even longer waitlists for parents who need child care in order to work and support their families.
Our state’s child care system needs a one-time investment of a minimum of $200 million to stabilize the child care system while the state develops long-term sustainable measures.
Unfortunately, the NC House and Senate have released their budget proposals, which each only provide about $136 million to extend these critical compensation grants. It’s not enough.
To make matters worse, the House budget goes even further to destabilize our state’s child care system by proposing to change the way child care subsidies are funded and remove the incentive for programs to achieve a high quality rating. This is a major step backwards for ensuring access to high quality care for NC’s children.
Tell NC lawmakers to stop playing games with our state’s child care system, our families, and our jobs, and fully fund the child care compensation grants! Send your lawmakers a note by clicking here right now. We’ve made it super easy!
Got a moment to make your note even more powerful? Take a second to personalize your message by sharing your own experience with needing child care. Click and type in the grey box to add your own story.
Why does having access to quality child care matter to your family? What would you do if your child care provider closed? How would it hurt your family? Is it a struggle to afford child care? Why is it important to you that your child’s teacher is paid enough to support their family? Just a few sentences about any of these questions will make your message even more powerful!