[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 56 (Wednesday, April 18, 2012)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E572]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


              INTRODUCTION OF CHILD CARE AFFORDABILITY ACT

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                        HON. CAROLYN B. MALONEY

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, April 18, 2012

  Mrs. MALONEY. Mr. Speaker, throughout the country, affordable and 
safe child care is essential for working families. According to the 
U.S. Census Bureau, more than 70 percent of children have one or more 
parents in the labor force. A survey commissioned by the National 
Association of Child Care Resource & Referral Agencies revealed that 57 
percent of parents reported in 2010 that child care was a necessity, 
compared with 49 percent in 2006.
  Despite the great need for affordable child care, there is a wide gap 
between what today's families are earning and the cost of child care 
and household expenses. In 2010, the average cost of full-time care for 
an infant in a child care center varied from $4,650 in Mississippi to 
over $18,000 in the District of Columbia. In my own state of New York, 
the average yearly cost of part time care for a school-age child is an 
exorbitant $10,400. The amount of assistance offered by the current 
federal credit for child care costs is a minimum of only $600 for one 
child and $1,200 for two children. Unfortunately, this amount does 
little to offset our country's extraordinarily high child care costs. 
To ease the burden on our working families, today I am introducing the 
Child Care Affordability Act. This legislation would create a new tax 
deduction for child care and dependent care expenses and expand the 
current credit for child and dependent care expenses, so families 
receive a truly impactful level of assistance. Parents would be given 
the choice of utilizing the tax deduction or the tax credit to select 
the option that provides them with the greatest amount of relief.
  During tax season, it is important to offer working families who are 
struggling to afford child care.

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