Child Care

Across Multnomah County, 492 preschoolers are on waitlists for four Head Start and Oregon Pre-K providers, according to the state's Early Learning Division. It's part of what makes Oregon a "child care desert." But the issues aren't space or money. The issue is a lack of staff. To highlight the shortage, Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici in April toured a Neighborhood House Head Start program in Northwest Portland.

Rep. Suzanne Bonamici (D-Ore.) introduced a resolution that urges the House of Representatives to pass a "robust" legislation that would give all children and families access to high-quality, affordable child care and early education. The legislation should ensure that no family has to pay "more than 7 percent of their income" for child care and that families most in need will pay nothing, according to the resolution. It should also guarantee child care workers a "living wage," among other investment suggestions.

More than 90,000 families, more than a million kids, that's how many people in the Northwest have been getting more money in the bank every month from the enhanced child tax credits that were part of the American Rescue Plan put into action earlier this year. U.S. Rep. Suzanne Bonamici, D-Oregon, doesn't think one more year is enough. "I'm also supporting legislation called the American Family Act. That would permanently extend enhanced child tax credits. The Build Back Better Act as you know is pending in the Senate; it's a beginning, but this is a permanent extension," said Bonamici.

Nearly 93,000 families across the Pacific Northwest are getting their final expanded child tax credit payment of this year Wednesday. Over the past six months, families have received up to $300 for every child they claimed on their 2020 tax returns. The Biden administration believes the advanced credit payments lifted millions of American kids out of poverty this year. Oregon Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici met with child advocates Wednesday morning to see how the payments are helping local families.

It's no secret that Oregon is in desperate need of bolstered childcare. Every single county in the Beaver State was deemed a childcare desert for infants and toddlers in a 2012 Oregon State University report, long before COVID-19 put the issue on the forefront. Childcare providers and advocates say the problem has only worsened in recent years. U.S. Rep. Suzanne Bonamici reiterated this point during her quarterly Oregon Child Care Advisory Board meeting on Monday, Dec. 13.

Oregon Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici was in Portland Monday to discuss her efforts to help young people meet their most basic needs. She visited the Portland State University campus and stopped by the campus homeless shelter, the campus food pantry, and a child development center. She says the Build Back Better Act will help students who rely on these services.