As families struggle to find childcare they can afford, childcare providers are struggling to survive, and the state is struggling to keep parents in the workforce — that hurts us all. We need to expand childcare support in Maine – not cut it. We need a budget that supports Maine families, brings in new revenue for the programs we rely on, and makes our taxes fairer.

Can you add your name to this open letter to legislators? We’re calling on them to raise revenue by taxing the wealthiest Mainers so we can better fund our childcare system.

When we raise revenue by taxing the wealthiest Mainers, we can access hundreds of millions of dollars every year we’ve been leaving on the table – all without raising taxes on ordinary Mainers – by raising taxes on the wealthiest Mainers (with a millionaire’s tax and other bills); making sure that rich corporations pay what they truly owe in taxes (like by closing loopholes and ending ineffective subsidies); and making our income tax system more progressive (for example, by adding higher tax brackets for higher earners).

We will be delivering the letter below to lawmakers in the coming weeks as they work on the budget.

Letter to lawmakers:

Dear Senator/Representative:

Parents, childcare providers and advocates were aghast earlier this year when Gov. Janet Mills’ proposed two-year budget included effective pay cuts for childcare providers, major cuts to the Head Start program in Maine, and the elimination of a program that helped childcare providers pay for their own childcare expenses.

Thank you for ensuring the continuing services budget passed in March didn’t have these cuts – we need your help to make sure the next budget package continues to protect and expand programs like the Salary Sustainability Program for Child Care Professionals, the scholarships and apprenticeship programs for becoming an early childhood educator, the staff scholarship program, and the Child Care Affordability Program.

Our state is in the midst of a childcare crisis: As families struggle to find childcare they can afford, childcare providers are struggling to survive, and the state is struggling to keep parents in the workforce. We are all being hurt by this, and to fix this situation we need to be supporting childcare providers and parents more, not less.  

With more revenue, we can support families and providers – and grow both our economy and workforce. All parents deserve access to affordable, high-quality childcare and early education for their kids – and all providers deserve to earn a living wage.

How we can support kids, parents and providers

Bills in the legislature now–including LD 1955 (which provides more pathways to early childhood careers and stabilizes salaries) and LD 1859 (establishing regional resource hubs) acknowledge that childcare educators are the workforce behind the workforce, and that when they’re unable to earn a living wage or have stability in their work situations, they are often forced to leave the field. That means parents don’t have a place for their kids, and they are often forced to leave the workforce. It’s a terrible cascade.

We’ve made progress in the last couple of years with state supports for educators – and that workforce is growing. But we need to keep growing those supports, or we’ll lose the progress we’ve made. These bills will help develop a pipeline for new educators, support those we have, and make childcare more affordable for parents.

With more revenue, we can fund these vital improvements to our system, and help take care of our families – and grow our economy.

We CAN have it all!

When we raise revenue by taxing the wealthiest Mainers, we can access hundreds of millions of dollars every year we’ve been leaving on the table – all without raising taxes on ordinary Mainers – by raising taxes on the wealthiest Mainers (with a millionaire’s tax and other bills); making sure that rich corporations pay what they truly owe in taxes (like by closing loopholes and ending ineffective subsidies); and making our income tax system more fair (for example, by adding higher tax brackets for higher earners).

Please tell Leadership and AFA: we need a budget that supports Maine families, brings in the revenue for the programs we rely on, and makes our taxes fairer.

Sincerely,

The undersigned constituents