Víctor Caycho/Washington Hispanic
Legislation helping Virginia’s low- and middle-income families to meet childcare costs during and after the pandemic was signed into law Monday by the state’s Governor, Ralph Northam.
HB-2206, sponsored by the Speaker of the State House of Representatives, Eileen Filler-Corn, will allow families with children under the age of 13 and who meet the necessary requirements, to apply for assistance administered by the Department of Social Services to pay in part the cost of part-time or full-time childcare in an approved center.
Families earning up to $ 88,000 a year are eligible, and the legislation included an emergency clause that allowed for immediate enactment.
“These times of the COVID-19 pandemic have been incredibly difficult for parents balancing the need to put food on the table while caring for their children at home,” Filler-Corn noted.
He stressed that the legislation will help lighten the burden on working families by making quality child care more affordable during this public health crisis.
A recent weekly survey by the US Census Bureau found that in Virginia households 48.5% of families with children under the age of 18 have lost income since March 2020 compared to 38.7% of households childless.
In addition, it verified that families of all races, ethnicities and income levels have been economically affected by the pandemic.
–
