Federal child-care legislation is not a debate about whether children are better off with a full-time mother, but rather about what to do when a full-time parent is not an option, according to Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, a key backer of child-care legislation.
"I believe having a parent in the home is the way to go," Hatch said during a Utah Forum discussion Thursday. "It's not always possible. In Utah, statistics show that 59 percent of women work - two-third of them because they have to."While Hatch said the bill he supports, the Act for Better Child Care (commonly called the ABC bill) is not perfect, he described it as a "reasonable bill."
The bill, expected to cost $17 billion over five years, is being considered by conference committees. Hatch said he expects it will emerge with key provisions intact. For instance, it sets no federal standards, but allows states to decide six categories. There are no minimum standards for close relatives who provide child care. And religious institutions are not barred from any part of the program, which would operate on a voucher system.
A key provision is expansion of the Earned Income Tax Credit, even if one parent elects to remain at home. The bill was "de-yuppified," Hatch said, because the dependent tax credit will be refundable, meaning people who don't have to pay taxes can still receive the money.
"I have come to the idea of federal involvement in child care slowly," he said. "Everywhere I go, women are asking for help. They don't know what to do. And I would rather subsidize a woman who's working for $6 an hour than those who are contributing nothing."
Hatch said he became involved because children who don't have adequate child care "are ready prey to drug lords, pornographers and pushers . . . and it needs to be federal because, frankly, states don't have the money. I'm going to take some of the federal money being misused and use it for something worthwhile. I think it's important to do what is right. Basically, this is going to help the poorest of the poor, and it's the only way to get off welfare rolls."
Up to 15 million children need child care, he said, and they aren't receiving it. The ABC bill provides a $500 tax credit for the first child and $250 for the second. He said he expects President Bush to sign the bill if it passes.
"We have endangered millions of lives - innocent children. I simply refuse to walk away from the issue . . . and not do the very best I can when it's a very serious problem."