HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. — Millions of families will be impacted this week as the emergency childcare funding is set to run out.
The $24 billion allocated by Congress during the pandemic expires on September 30. Childcare centers say this could have a catastrophic impact on working families.
As the funding runs out, childcare will cost more for parents, and thousands of daycare centers will shut their doors.
According to a new reporter from The Century Foundation, in Florida, 212,721 people are expected to lose their childcare, and 2,196 childcare programs are expected to close. The federal funding allowed childcare providers to enroll more children and keep their doors open by covering personnel costs, rent, and utilities.
It's a ripple effect that will then force parents to cut work hours or stay home to care for their children.
Alana Smith is a single working mother with two kids who spend the day at daycare while she's at work. She feels uneasy as that September 30 date gets closer.
“It’s definitely a concern because with everything, prices are going up, and your income isn't going up not as fast as prices are going up, so it's definitely a struggle to afford daycare and to maintain that working as a single parent,” Smith said.
Katricia Hoggs is the Tampa Bay Area leader for Kinder Care. She said she's not worried that they will close their locations, but she said prices will spike for parents after the funding runs out.
“I think it would affect us as much as it would nationally, but it could be catastrophic not just us but to everybody,” Hoggs said.
Jeannina Perez is a part of a grassroots organization called Momsrising. She explained this would only make things worse for the working parent.
“To the working parent in general, it puts your job at risk. Quite frankly, one of the things that we know, when there's childcare breakdowns, it forces parents out of the workforce, and it impacts moms the most,” Perez said.
Perez explained that her group is pushing elected leaders to pass the Child Care Stabilization Act, which would extend the funding.
