Child care is unaffordable in every state, report says
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US Education News
California parents need to cough up roughly $17,000 a year to pay for child care, according to the Economic Policy Institute.Even in the cheapest state in the union for child care—Alabama—it costs 10% of the median household income for someone to look after the little ones.
The high cost of child care, one of the biggest expenses that families face, has real consequences for parents and children. Women often sacrifice upward mobility, and the economic trade-offs can create a situation where low-income parents literally cannot afford to go to work, as the Money Scoop reported.
The federal government defines “affordable” child care as costing less than 7% of a family’s household income. By this definition, some suggest, every state in the nation is failing to provide this vital resource. President Joe Biden had been pushing for an ambitious plan to make child care more affordable for families while also raising the wages of child care workers, as part of his social spending