Thanks for the news that there is currently bipartisan work on child care issues in Congress (“In Our View: Child care challenges finally getting the attention,” March 7, The Columbian). Kudos to Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler, R-Battle Ground, for working to solve some of the many issues with one of her Democratic colleagues. Meanwhile, Sen. Patty Murray’s reintroduced bill: Child Care for Working Families Act (S. 1806), addresses child care problems in a comprehensive way.
Together, these bills bring hope for the massive difficulties faced by working families. We can add our voices by calling or writing those who represent us (even if they introduced the bill), thanking them and encouraging them to work to pass this needed legislation into law. We can also help them by sending this editorial to friends in other states, asking them to encourage their representatives to join the effort to pass this thoughtful legislation.
