Want to Grow Oregon's Economy? Fix the Child Care Crisis.

Oregon’s working parents, particularly those with infants and toddlers, know how difficult it is to find child care that’s accessible, affordable, and high-quality. Meanwhile, Oregon employers know the economic impact of these child care challenges.

A new national study by ReadyNation examining the economic impacts of the nation’s child care crisis on working parents, employers, and taxpayers describes the consequences: an annual cost of $57 billion in lost earnings, productivity, and revenue.

In Oregon, a survey of more than 900 parents of young children showed that over half cited finding affordable child care as one of the things they found hard about being a parent. Studies verify parents’ reports, with nearly seven infants and toddlers for each licensed child care slot.

The business leaders of ReadyNation Oregon are calling on lawmakers to protect and expand programs that enhance the affordability and availability of quality child care – and to foster continuing innovations at the state and local level that address this problem for parents and employers.

Evidence-based, sufficiently-funded policy initiatives to fix the child care crisis will improve life outcomes for Oregon children today, and will support a more productive workforce and economy for our state, both now and in the years to come.