[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 42 (Tuesday, March 30, 2004)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3323-S3324]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          CHILD CARE AMENDMENT

  Mr. JEFFORDS. Mr. President, I rise today to discuss the Snowe-Dodd 
amendment to add $6 billion more in child care funding to the welfare 
bill that is before the Senate.
  There is no issue more important than child care assistance in the 
context of this reauthorization. I commend Senators Snowe and Dodd for 
their leadership on this issue.
  Child care assistance is critical for a number of reasons.
  First, there is a strong connection between access to child care and 
the ability of parents to join and stay in the workforce.
  Second, quality child care is critical to building the foundations 
for school readiness and later academic success.
  Third, states are facing tough economic times and they are cutting 
back on support for child care. Our children need additional help from 
the Federal Government.
  Child care is the No. 1 issue facing families today. Seventy-five 
percent of American children under the age of five spend at least part 
of their day in child care.
  In Vermont, over 80 percent of women with children under the age of 
six are in the workforce.
  Without access to child care, these families are often forced to 
leave their employment and seek public assistance.
  We must support additional child care funding in order to support 
low-income parents and help them remain in the workforce.
  Quality child care helps lay the groundwork for school readiness and 
success later in life. We know that the most crucial time for a child's 
brain development is from birth to 5 years old.
  Elementary and secondary education are extremely important.
  But without a positive, high-quality experience in the earliest 
stages of development, too many children are set up for failure in 
elementary, middle and high school.
  By adopting the Snowe-Dodd amendment, we will give more parents the 
power to choose high-quality child care for their children and give 
those children the opportunity to get the most out of their early 
years.
  If we are truly serious about closing the achievement gap among our 
students, and between the United States and our international 
competitors, then funding for high-quality early childhood care is the 
place to begin.

[[Page S3324]]

  The States are facing tough financial situations. The General 
Accounting Office found that since January 2001, twenty-three States 
have made changes that would decrease the availability of child care 
assistance; while only nine States made changes that could increase 
child care availability.
  I want to underscore this point.
  According to the GAO, nearly half of the States are decreasing the 
availability of child care for working families. And this report may 
just be the tip of the iceberg. Federal funding is critical to reverse 
this trend.
  My colleagues must understand the importance of this issue. By 
adopting this amendment, we can help families move off of welfare 
permanently. Or we can prevent them from needing welfare assistance in 
the first place.
  I see this amendment not as a choice, but as a necessity. I urge my 
colleagues to support the Snowe-Dodd amendment, to support our working 
families and to support our youngest children.
  I yield the floor.

                          ____________________