MADISON, Wis. — Wisconsin child care providers are asking state government for help as federal pandemic relief funds that have been propping up the industry are set to run out in June.
“I’m to the point where I can’t charge any more. Parents can’t pay any more,” said Heather Murray, who owns Arthouse Preschool in Waunakee. “We need the investment, otherwise doors are going to start closing.”
High costs make it difficult for parents to find accessible and affordable child care in Wisconsin. The average cost of infant child care in 2021 was more than $13,000 annually, according to a report by Forward Analytics.
Meanwhile, low wages make it difficult to recruit enough workers to meet demand. The same report showed that child care workers in Wisconsin made just over $12 an hour on average in 2022.
According to the Center for American Progress, more than half of all Wisconsinites live in a child care desert.
“The business model isn’t functional,” Murray said. “When I have to pay staff a certain amount to keep them here and parents can’t pay any more in tuition, I’m barely making enough for myself sometimes.”
Watch: Child care business owners warn of funding crisis
Murray and other child care providers receive federal COVID-19 aid money through the state-run Child Care Counts program, which they’ve used to raise wages and keep their doors open in the wake of the pandemic.
But those funds expire in June, and there isn’t a clear path forward for the nearly 5,000 child care centers that have received support from Child Care Counts.
“Providers are in an impossible position,” Democratic Sen. Sarah Keyeski said.
Democratic Gov. Tony Evers wants to continue the program with $480 million in state funding over the next two years – a proposal that’s unlikely to garner support from Republicans who control the state Legislature.
“We need an all-encompassing child care solution. Child Care Counts isn’t the all-encompassing solution,” said Republican Rep. Joy Goeben.
Goeben, who ran an in-home child care center for 10 years, argues Democrats need to look beyond just government subsidies to solve the child care crisis.
Her ideas for legislation include incentives for child care centers to provide 4K education, instead of schools, and policies to bolster Wisconsin’s in-home child care industry. She says that in-home child care centers can offer lower costs and more options for parents.
“When you’re talking a child care desert, that could be an area that can’t sustain a large child care center but could have a number of in-home child care centers,” Goeben said.
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