Senator Murray Statement on the President's Supplemental Request

Press Release

"Today, the President has made a request for critical funding to tackle so many of the urgent challenges we face here at home: resources to keep a fragile child care industry afloat in the midst of a worsening crisis, investments to ensure brave wildland firefighters don't see a pay cut, funding to help communities recover after devastating disasters, assistance to help keep communities and places of worship safe from hateful attacks, and help to continue a critical program that makes sure Americans can afford high-speed internet. These are all critical priorities that we've got to tackle--and I will be working with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to make sure we do.

And now that vital child care stabilization funds have expired, the child care crisis in particular will get worse if we don't act on the President's request. Providers across the country are facing tough decisions about laying off staff or even closing their doors entirely. We've got to act on child care to prevent billions more in lost wages, revenue, and growth--not to mention immense new stress on parents already struggling to get by. Child care is a top issue for families nationwide--and it has got to be at the top of our agenda here in Congress as well.

There is a lot happening in the world today--not to mention a lot of chaos in some corners of Congress at the moment--and while we absolutely must deliver on key national security priorities as quickly as we are able to, we've also got to tackle the challenges facing families here at home, especially the growing child care crisis. We are the United States of America--we can stand with our allies around the world and solve problems for our families at the same time."

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