SALEM, OR -- State Senator Tim Knopp (R-Bend) is sponsoring a bill to help parents pay for childcare. "Working parents in Oregon deserve to have affordable and quality childcare," Knopp said at a hearing, this week. "They were spending 30% or more of their gross income on childcare." And, he says the state's increase in the minimum wage will push those costs higher.
Knopp's bill would increase the amount of Oregon's child care tax credit. Kate Newhall, with Family Forward Oregon, says it's not enough. "Tax credits don’t serve as economic drivers, whereas subsidy programs like ERDC, do." However, the Employment Related Day Care program (ERDC) is in danger of having some funding cut while the state tries to cover a budget gap of nearly $2 billion.
Knopp needs bipartisan support to get his bill passed and offer parents more help with childcare costs.