MADISON, WI – Yesterday, Senators Dianne Hesselbein and LaTonya Johnson were joined by Childcare Providers from across Wisconsin to speak on the current budget negotiations and the overwhelming need for the state’s Child Care Counts payments to be extended. The Child Care Counts program is set to expire at the end of the month; without these investments, already struggling child care centers may be forced to close their doors for good. 

The speakers at yesterday’s press conference called out Madison Republicans Howard Marklein and Devin LeMahieu for their willingness to sacrifice the care of Wisconsin children and their refusal to work with Democrats in the legislature to reach an agreement. 

Read more below on Senate Leaders and Childcare Providers coming together to call out Republican inaction and to advocate for Child Care Counts: 

Wisconsin Examiner: 

  • Brooke Legler, co-founder of Wisconsin Early Childhood Action Needed (WECAN), said Republican lawmakers’ proposals are inadequate to meet the crisis and Republican arguments opposing subsidies don’t make sense. “They subsidize farmers. They subsidize the manufacturers,” Legler said. “Last [session] when they denied the funding for Child Care Counts … they gave $500 million to the Brewers, so I have an issue with them saying they can’t subsidize.”
  • Sen. LaTonya Johnson (D-Milwaukee), a member of the Joint Finance Committee, urged Republicans to work to ensure families have access to child care, saying the state’s economy relies on parents being able to work and that children are better off when they have a reliable, safe place to stay and learn. “We cannot allow these critical centers to close their doors and opportunities to be lost to our children forever,” Johnson said. “If the families don’t have quality, dependable child care, if they have to remain at home, or even worse…  these are all options that we don’t want to face… and these are all options that our children don’t deserve.
  • Senate Minority Leader Dianne Hesselbein (D-Middleton) said her caucus is prepared to work on the state budget and she has “continually” been in conversation with Evers and is open to conversations with LeMahieu.  “As of right now, I have not heard from Sen. Devin LeMahieu yet, but my phone is on,” Hesselbein said. 

WisconsinEye:

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