From Christina Becker

Monroe

To the Editor: 

Child Care Counts funding On Friday, at 2:30 a.m. the Republicans on the Joint Finance Committee voted to eliminate the successful Child Care Counts program that was piloted using federal American Rescue Plan funds. 

This program was created with the family and group child care professionals input and a requirement to use the funds to raise wages, which it did by an average of $2 an hour. 

This loss means that my Family Daycare will have to raise rates 20% or $30 per week.

With this increase it will make our current parents have to make a decision as like many these days they live paycheck to paycheck, and I am asking that my state reps Senator Howard Marklein and Representative Todd Novak to co-sponsor an amendment to include $340 million for Child Care Counts in the state budget.