Hey there, folks! Governor Tony Evers here.
There’s no denying that our state can’t afford more parents leaving the workforce because they can’t find or afford quality child care.
And during the 2025 Year of the Kid, it’s more important than ever to ensure that our kids have the high-quality care they need and deserve.
That’s why I was proud to sign our bipartisan, pro-kid budget that invests more than $360 million in the state’s child care industry to help fill available child care slots, cut wait lists, and lower the cost of care for working families.
In fact, thanks to our work investing over $123 million in the Wisconsin Shares Program, I announced last week that about 15,000 Wisconsin Shares families will see an average savings of about $174 per month.
I also fought hard to secure $110 million in direct payments for child care providers, and the first round of payments already went out to thousands of providers statewide.
Funds from just that first month’s payment helped retain over 25,500 staff and care for more than 126,000 kids.
And that’s a big deal, folks.
We all know child care is too expensive.
That’s why we’re working to give working families a little breathing room in their household budgets while making sure providers stay open, kids are cared for, and workers remain in our workforce.
Folks, that’s a win-win-win for Wisconsin.
But there is, as always, more work to do. We must keep building the future we want for our kids and our grandkids, including supporting our state’s child care industry.
Thank you.
