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| AFFORDABLE CHILD CARE
Has the Clinton Administration found a solution for working families? February 4, 1998 |
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Questions asked
in this forum:
Will Clinton's proposal prompt families to seek child care instead of staying home? Shouldn't we actively encourage parents to stay home? Can the government really support a parent's choice to stay home? Why should U.S. taxpayers subsidize parents who want to work? How do you reconcile welfare reform with the expectation that parents stay home? Kevin Gilleland of Raleigh, NC asks: Will Clinton's child-care proposal inadvertently prompt families, who could afford to stay at home raise their own children, to seek care outside the home, since they now have the option to go back to work instead?
Sen. Patty Murray responds:
No, I don't see the White House proposal or any proposal causing major shifts in the current child care market. People, especially those with the economic means, decide to work or stay at home for many reasons. The effects will be larger on lower-income families -- equalizing some of the effects wrought by current welfare reform efforts. My overriding concerns are to increase the options for all parents.
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