Support H.456, An Act to expand access to family, friend, and neighbor-provided childcare
Dear Chair Lewis, Chair Garlick, and members of the Joint Committee on Education,
We, the undersigned organizations, urge you to support H.456 An Act to expand access to family, friend, and neighbor-provided childcare, introduced by Representative Marjorie Decker and the Care That Works coalition. This legislation is urgently needed for low-income families across Massachusetts that do not have access to formal child care programs or have child care needs that formal programs cannot currently accommodate–parents with nonstandard schedules, with specific language and cultural needs, with children with special needs, and in child care deserts or rural communities. By passing this bill to establish a minimum wage floor for family, friend, and neighbor child care and a more flexible voucher, we can give low-income parents access to more and better options for child care today.
