High-quality child care enables parents to work and provide their children with opportunities to learn, socialize, and build new skills during the critical age for brain development. Unfortunately, Texas is experiencing a child care crisis, and many working families are unable to find and afford high-quality child care. The following bills are part of a complementary package of strategies that will help parents go to work and provide children with enriching early learning experiences.
1) Provide more scholarships to eligible families on the TWC Child Care Services waitlist to help more parents go to work and secure high-quality care for their children.
Relevant bills:
- SB 1 and HB 1
- SB 1739/SJR 56 by Sen. West and HB 4024 by Rep. Walle
2) Ensure child care programs can recruit and retain qualified staff by adding child care workers to the state’s priority list for scholarships
Relevant bills: SB 462 by Sen. Kolkhorst and HB 3807 by Rep. Harris Davila
3) Support a Child Care Innovation Pilot Program to expand child care access to meet workforce needs
Relevant bills: HB 3191 by Rep. Button
4) Establish the Texas plan to better support preschoolers with disabilities and developmental delays
Relevant bills: HB 2310 by Rep. Ordaz
5) Allow local communities to provide reimbursement rates to child care programs at the state’s established reimbursement rate to incentivize child care programs to enroll more eligible families
Relevant bills: SB 972 by Sen. Zaffirini and HB 2294 by Rep. Thompson
