Statement: National Defense Authorization Act Includes Critical Child Care Support for Military Families

Today, Congress passed the National Defense Authorization Act, taking an important step toward addressing the critical child care needs of military families. Nearly 40% of service members have children, many under age five, making access to quality affordable, reliable care essential. The bill includes two targeted pilot programs to expand access where it’s needed most: one for in-home child care and another for families in high-cost areas. These programs:

• Authorize over $491 million to design and build new child care centers.
• Increase monthly child care payments for infants and toddlers in high-cost areas, helping ensure providers can offer care where it is most expensive and hardest to find.
• Increase parental choice and invest in funding for child care fee assistance, ensuring that eligible military families can access the type of care that best meets their needs.

FFYF Executive Director Sarah Rittling released the following statement in response:

“Reliable child care is a cornerstone of our economy, and it is especially critical for parents in our nation’s military. These two initiatives provide essential child care support, including increased provider pay and targeted pilot programs that address the unique needs of service members with infants and toddlers. We applaud this commitment to strengthening and expanding access to affordable, reliable child care for our troops. We also hope Members of Congress will use this as an opportunity to pursue similar solutions that make quality child care accessible for all families.”

Read more about the pilot programs here.