Going soft on child care fraud is a betrayal of working moms
Recent headlines uncovering massive child care fraud in Minnesota and elsewhere have shocked and enraged working moms like me all across America.Fraudsters aren’t just stealing our tax dollars — they’re driving up the cost of child care, which is already unaffordable for too many families.
Moms are looking to our leaders for action.Child care costs have grown for decades, but since the pandemic, they have become a crisis.In the biggest cities, child care consumes up to 20 percent of family incomes.
The median cost of child care for two kids exceeds the average rent in all 50 states.Child care is more expensive than in-state college tuition in 38 states — and parents have to pay for four years before the child can even go to school.These enormous costs come in addition to massive government spending on child care.
The federal government spends some $30 billion per year on child care — more than it would cost to build two or three Trump walls.These costs are not happening because child care workers are getting rich: On the contrary, the median pay for childcare workers is $15 an hour.Policymakers, child care workers, and parents alike are asking: Where does all our money go?One reason child care is so expensive is that, in major cities like Minneapolis, Washington, D.C., or Dallas, where I live, child care is difficult to find.Some 4.2 million kids in America can’t get into child care programs.An even higher number can’t get in somewhere their parents can feel good about.
California's top news, sports and entertainment delivered to your inbox every day.Please provide a valid email.
By clicking above you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.Never miss a story That is why it is even more infuriating that criminals have been exploiting the system, stealing our hard-earned tax dollars and using up resources that families need.
Child care fraud in Minneapolis has been in the headlines,...