Farrar Touting Legislative Child Care Initiative

HARTFORD — On International Women's Day, State Rep. Kate Farrar (D – West Hartford) testified before the legislature’s Education Committee during a Monday public hearing in support of a legislative proposal that would help reduce the cost of child care in Connecticut and ensure more women can get back to work post-pandemic.

"On this International Women’s Day, we can celebrate women by taking concrete policy action that will improve our lives, our economic security, and in turn our state," Farrar said. "Connecticut cannot get back to work if women cannot get back to work. And women cannot get back to work unless there are opportunities to access affordable child care and the child care support necessary to complete education and training. In this moment, our state can lead a recovery that focuses on fairness and equity."

Currently, Connecticut is one of only two states that makes no provision for child care subsidies for parents in job training or school, a policy that disproportionately impacts women. The proposal will help reduce the high-cost of child care and allow parents to participate in the job training and education programs necessary to secure family-sustaining wages and employment.

Specifically, the bill expands eligibility for the Care4Kids child care subsidy for parents enrolled in the Even Start program or other adult education programs approved by the state Office of Early Childhood Commissioner, parents in job training programs, and those enrolled in postsecondary education programs. The proposal would also provide a 90-day half-time child care certificate to assist unemployed parents seek employment.

Currently, this subsidy is only open to families that are participating in the Jobs First program, which provides employment services to families receiving Temporary Family Assistance.