Missouri lawmakers start session with renewed promise to expand child care services
The Missouri legislative session kicked off Wednesday with a renewed interest among lawmakers of both parties to improve access to child care services statewide.
The push from Democrats and Republicans in both chambers of the Missouri General Assembly comes as the state is losing out on millions in tax revenue due to parents who leave the workforce because of child care issues. And the difficulty in finding affordable care in rural areas has been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.
It also comes on the heels of Missouri’s near-total ban on abortion, which was triggered after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June.
“It is important for those of us who call ourselves pro-life in this chamber to recognize what exactly that means and maybe even work to redefine and broaden the term itself,” Missouri Senate President Pro Tem Caleb Rowden, a Columbia Republican, said on the Senate floor Wednesday.
Rowden, in his speech, vowed to support several child care-related bills filed by Senate Republicans, including a bill that would expand certain child care subsidies for people whose income exceeds the maximum threshold and another that would extend healthcare coverage for moms after the birth of their child.
He also said his personal priority is to “make it easier and cheaper” for prospective parents to navigate the adoption process in Missouri.
“Men and women who seek to adopt in our state shouldn’t be butted out by too high a price tag or too many barriers to entry, put up largely by their government,” Rowden said.
Missouri House Speaker Dean Plocher, a St. Louis Republican, in a news conference with reporters, framed the issue of child care as a business issue. He said he spoke with business leaders who said access to child care was a concern for the state’s workforce.
A recent report from the Missouri Chamber of Commerce found that Missouri misses out on $1.35 billion annually, including $280 million in tax revenue, due to child care issues. The report cited a study that showed 28% of respondents reported that they or someone in their household had left a job or not taken a job because of problems with child care.
“We have to be mindful that we have a fiscally responsible budget, but I want to provide the resources that Missouri families need to get to work,” Plocher told reporters.
Democrats in both the House and Senate said expanding access to child care services was one of their top priorities this session. Senate Democrats touted a bill that would increase state reimbursements to school districts with early childhood programs.
House Minority Leader Crystal Quade, a Springfield Democrat, told reporters Wednesday that she believes Democrats will be able to reach a consensus with Republicans on a child care-related proposal. She said she expected Republican Gov. Mike Parson to propose a child care plan at his annual state of the state address later this month.
“Folks now understand that this is a serious workforce issue, but it goes beyond workforce,” she said. “We need to be preparing our kids for success.”
Quade later told The Star that she would like to see expansion of legislation that allows small businesses to provide child care for employees through a co-op model and on-site daycares for state employees. She said the state also needs to look at providing incentives to childcare providers in rural communities.
“There are a lot of options on the table,” she said.
Casey Hanson, the director of outreach and engagement for Kids Win Missouri, a coalition of organizations that advocate for child well-being, told The Star Wednesday that her organization is hopeful that lawmakers will come to an agreement on a proposal.
The group is waiting to see what Parson proposes, but she said there’s interest in a plan to strengthen the state’s child care subsidy system.
“We’re optimistic that we could see some further investments this year in childcare and also some thought about how we can create a more sustainable early childhood system for the state of Missouri,” she said.
