U.S. Senators Young & Hassan reintroduce bill to improve child care accessibility for working families

U.S. Senators Todd Young (R-Ind.) and Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.) reintroduced legislation to improve access to affordable child care for families with parents working nontraditional hours.

The After Hours Child Care Act would support expanding legitimate existing child care programs, or establishing new facilities in some cases, so parents can remain in the workforce and provide for their families while working outside of the traditional work hours of 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

“Hoosier parents rely on affordable child care in order to work, advance their careers, and provide for their families,” said Senator Young. “Currently, child care options are extremely limited for families, especially in rural Indiana communities. Our legislation will help address the needs of working parents, enabling them to more easily pursue employment opportunities that best fit the need of their families.”

“At a time when many families are struggling with high costs, we need to do more to help parents find and afford child care so that they can work and support their families, including when their jobs require early mornings, late nights, or weekend shifts,” said Senator Hassan. “This commonsense, bipartisan bill will help families across New Hampshire and the country access affordable child care that works with their schedules.”

In communities across America, major industries such as health care, advanced manufacturing, and logistics rely on workers for early morning or late-night shifts, as well as weekend availability. The After Hours Child Care Act would help fill these high-demand roles by removing barriers created by child care accessibility, especially in rural communities.

If enacted, the After Hours Child Care Act would:

• Expand capacity for an existing, legitimate child care program to serve families working nontraditional hours
• Support efforts to establish an on-site child care program at a workplace
• Ensure that federal funds supplement current efforts by requiring a 25% match
• Require a report every two years on the bill’s effectiveness in improving child care availability

In addition to Senators Young and Hassan, U.S. Senators Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), Tim Kaine (D-Va.), and John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.) joined the legislation. U.S. Representatives Ashley Hinson (R-IA-02) and Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR-01) introduced companion legislation in the House of Representatives.

Bill supporters include First Five Years Fund and Bipartisan Policy Center Action.

“Almost half of U.S. parents work outside the traditional 9-to-5, which makes affordable child care even harder to access,” said First Five Years Fund Executive Director Sarah Rittling. “Many of these families keep our communities running – working nights and weekends in hospitals, manufacturing plants, restaurants, and public safety – but struggle to find quality care for their own children because providers often lack the staff and resources to stay open during nontraditional hours. We’re grateful to Congresswomen Hinson and Bonamici and Senators Young and Hassan for their bipartisan leadership to help expand access to affordable, quality child care that better meets the needs of hardworking families.”

“Addressing the nation’s child care challenges is essential to supporting working families and maintaining a strong workforce,” said Bipartisan Policy Center Action (BPC Action) President Michele Stockwell. “Because the needs of families are not one-size-fits-all, we must advance innovative and flexible solutions, especially for those working nontraditional hours, including first responders, health care professionals, manufacturers, and service industry employees. This legislation is an important step toward expanding access to safe, affordable, high-quality child care and helping parents remain attached to the workforce.”

Full text of the legislation can be found here.