WASHINGTON, D.C. — The New York Times recently reported that the Trump-Vance administration is planning to redirect already limited Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) spending toward married, stay-at-home parents at the expense of the low-income working families who are already struggling to afford child care.

In response, Andrea Paluso, Director of the Child Care for Every Family Network, issued the following statement:

“All parents deserve support and real choices when it comes to caring for their children. But the Trump-Vance administration’s proposal is an attempt to limit those choices by incentivizing married mothers to stay out of the workforce, discriminating against single or divorced parents, and reducing options for working parents. We will not let their limited, sexist view of what a family should be harm the millions of families with children the Trump administration clearly doesn’t care about. And we will not let the administration pit the needs of stay-at-home parents against working parents. Every kind of family deserves support and access to child care.

CCDF is already chronically underfunded and not serving the lower-income families that are eligible; only 14 percent of qualifying children are actually part of the program. And diverting even more funds from the system will continue to hurt our country’s already struggling child care providers and force more of them to close, further reducing options for families. If Donald Trump or J.D. Vance actually wanted to help parents, they have real, achievable options right in front of them. They could expand the Child Tax Credit, giving money directly to parents, regardless of whether they’re married or working. They could also invest in the Child Care Development Block Grant. But instead they are spending billions on tax cuts for billionaires, new wars, and their cruel mass deportation agenda. 

No matter what, we’ll continue to fight back against the Trump-Vance administration’s nonstop attacks on the child care programs that so many families depend on to get by.” 

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The Child Care for Every Family Network is the national movement and campaign to transform child care, representing 2,000+ child care providers, impacted families, state and national organizations, and organizers across the country. Learn more: childcareforeveryfamily.org.