Subject: C​linton​ ​to​ C​ommit to Bold, N​ew​ G​oal​ ​As​ ​President​ ​to​ ​Limit ​Child ​Care ​Costs ​to​ ​No​ M​ore​ ​than​ 10 Percent​ ​of​ F​amily's​ I​ncome​
From: Hillary for America Press <[email-masked]>
To: Hillary for America Press <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 10 May 2016 13:25:17 -0400
List-Id: <nationalpress2016.hillaryclinton.com>

**

*Clinton​ ​to​ ​Commit to Bold, New​ ​Goal​ ​As​ ​President​ ​to​ ​Limit​
​Child ​​Care ​​Costs​ ​to​ ​No​ ​More​ ​than​​ 10 Percent​ ​of​ ​Family's​
​Income*

*In Remarks In Kentucky, Clinton To Also Announce Plans to Expand Home
Visiting Programs for New Parents and Boost Wages for Child Care Workers*

Speaking at a family health center in Louisville this afternoon as part of
her "Breaking Down Barriers" tour, Hillary Clinton will outline her vision
to help working families afford the rising costs of child care.

In particular, Clinton will commit that, as President, she will
significantly increase child care investments so no family pays more than
10 percent of their income for child care. From her earliest days after law
school working as a child advocate to her work as First Lady to pass the
Children’s Health Insurance Program, Hillary Clinton has championed the
cause of parents and families and has always believed that “it takes a
village” to raise a child.
​

The cost of child care has increased by nearly 25 percent during the past
decade, even as the wages of working families have stagnated. And while
families across America are stretched by skyrocketing costs, child care has
become more important than ever before—both as a critical work support for
the changing structure of American families and as an essential component
of a child’s early development. These high costs severely squeeze working
families, prevent too many children from getting a healthy start, and act
as a disincentive for parents to stay in the workforce.

In every state in America, sending two children to a child care center
exceeds the cost of rent. And in the majority of states it is more
expensive to send an infant to a child care center than a student to a
4-year public college. These high costs severely squeeze working families
and act as a disincentive for parents to stay in the workforce. Clinton
will fight for every family in America to have access to high quality,
affordable child care by significantly increasing the federal government’s
investment in child care subsidies and providing tax relief for the cost of
child care to working families.

​
Today, Clinton is also announcing two new steps she will take as president
to make access to quality child care and early learning a reality for
working families:

   - *Improve the quality of care by giving a RAISE to America’s child care
   workforce.* One of the key drivers of high quality child care is a
   supported and effective child care workforce. Yet, despite the high cost of
   child care, too many workers are not receiving a living wage, which fuels
   turnover and undermines the quality of care; and, also causes many of those
   caring for and educating our children to live in poverty themselves. To
   increase the quality of child care in America and pay child care workers
   for the true value of their worth, Clinton will create the Respect And
   Increased Salaries for Early Childhood Educators (RAISE) initiative. In
   line with Clinton’s Care Workers Initiative
   <https://www.hillaryclinton.com/briefing/factsheets/2015/11/22/caring-economy/>,
   RAISE will fund and support states and local communities that work to
   increase the compensation of child care providers and early educators, and
   provide equity with Kindergarten teachers by investing in educational
   opportunities, career ladders, and professional salaries
   ​.

​
​

   - *Provide home visiting services to more than 2 million parents and
   children in the next 10 years.* Research shows that providing home
   visits by a social worker or nurse, during and directly after pregnancy,
   significantly improve maternal and child health, development, and learning.
   To expand access to these critical supports, Clinton will double our
   investment in evidenced-based home visiting initiatives like the MIECHV
   program. As Senator, Clinton co-sponsored the Education Begins at Home Act,
   which built on her efforts in Arkansas to bring the HIPPY program to the
   state. Her work helped inspire the MIECHV program.

Clinton will also emphasize the importance of *supporting young parents as
they balance family responsibilities with their own careers*. Many are
still struggling to pay off their own student debt, and trying to save
money for the future. For young parents, the strain of raising a family is
particularly acute. As president, Clinton will:

o  *Award scholarships of up to $1,500 per year to as many as one million
student parents.* Nearly 5 million college students – over 25 percent all
college students – are balancing school with raising a child. To support
America’s student parents, Clinton will launch the Student Parents in
America Raising Kids (SPARK) program. Part of Clinton’s New College Compact
<https://www.hillaryclinton.com/briefing/factsheets/2015/08/10/college-compact-costs/>,
SPARK will award scholarships of up to $1,500 per year to as many as one
million student parents. Recipients can use the awards for costs that
create barriers to success—including child care and emergency financial
aid. SPARK is inspired by the Arkansas Single Parent Scholarship Fund,
which Clinton helped found as first lady of Arkansas. The program has since
awarded nearly 40,000 parent scholarships.

o  *Increase access to child care on college campuses by serving an
additional 250,000 children.* Clinton’s New College Compact will
dramatically increase access to child care on campus by increasing funding
for the Child Care Access Means Parents in School Program (CCAMPIS) from
$15 million to $250 million per year. CCAMPIS, which provides grants for
campus-based child care centers, has demonstrated real results in improving
the graduation and retention rates of its recipients.

These initiatives continue to build on Clinton’s robust agenda to ensure
working families can access affordable child care and early learning
programs, including:

   - *Doubling our investment in high-quality early learning programs.*
   Clinton will double the number of children served by Early Head Start and
   the Early Head Start-Child Care Partnership program.

   - *Making preschool universal for every 4-year old in America.* Clinton
   will ensure that every 4-year old in America has access to high-quality
   preschool within the next ten years. The evidence is clear that this will
   help reduce inequality over the long term, improve school performance, and
   allow parents to rest easier knowing their kids are learning and cared for.

   - *Providing working parents paid time off to care for a new baby.*
   Hillary knows that parents are the first and best caregivers for their
   babies, yet a quarter of all women in the America return to work less than
   two weeks after having a child, leaving them less time to bond with their
   newborns and increasing their risk of postpartum depression. Hillary will
   fight to pass 12 weeks of paid family leave
   <https://www.hillaryclinton.com/issues/paid-leave/>, so mothers and
   fathers can care for their new babies, and parents can take time off work
   to care for an ill child or parent, without fearing for their jobs or
   paychecks.

###

For Immediate Release, May 10, 2016
Contact: [email-masked]

PAID FOR BY HILLARY FOR AMERICA
Contributions or gifts to Hillary for America are not tax deductible.
Hillary for America, PO Box 5256, New York

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