FRANKFORT, Ky. (WDRB) -- Federal money helped prop up and stabilize Kentucky child care centers during the COVID-19 pandemic, a time when the industry saw a sharp decrease in business as the deadly virus swept across the world.
Some of that money even raised wages for workers. But as lawmakers craft the state's next two-year budget, the federal funding is running out, and Sen. Danny Carroll, R-Benton, said the state needs to take early education seriously.
"Until we start looking at early childhood education for what it is — education, in part of our system — and we start funding it in that manner, then we're not going to make any progress," he said Tuesday in Frankfort.
Carroll said he knows firsthand it's expensive to run a facility by looking at his bill from the final three months of 2023.
"You take away the federal dollars, (and) we lost $12,000," he said.
Dr. Sarah Vanover with Kentucky Youth Advocates said those federal dollars used in stabilization payments since the pandemic have helped keep staff on board and childcare centers open. There are nearly 1,800 across the state. But that government funding has ended, and more money will be needed just to keep status quo.
"Child care is just as important infrastructure as these industries, because, without it, working families cannot provide for themselves, and the community suffers as a whole," Vanover said.
That's one of the reasons Sen. Whitney Westerfield, R-Fruit Hill, filed Senate Bill 34, which calls for millions of dollars in child care assistance for low-income families and other wrap-around services.
"The child care assistance need is great," Westerfield said Tuesday. "It is universal in every corner of the state."
But he said one hesitation by other lawmakers is the projected cost.
"The hope is that this is something that we appreciate the need to invest in, just like pensions and infrastructure," Westferfield said. "The lives of people in Kentucky deserve better."
Kentucky Political News:
- Kentucky governor backs longer list of conditions eligible for treatment under medical marijuana law
- Kentucky lawmaker again proposes bill aimed at eliminating sales tax on menstrual products
- Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear calls for unity in GOP-leaning Kentucky to uplift economy, education
- 'A new era' | Gov. Beshear lays out priorities as Republicans continue to work on budget
Copyright 2024 WDRB Media. All Rights Reserved.
