The Missouri Chamber of Commerce and Industry praised House lawmakers on the passage of HB 870, a legislative package to help mitigate the child care crisis in Missouri. The bill is sponsored by Rep. Brenda Shields (R-St. Joseph).
“A lot of people used to think that child care was just an issue for working parents to figure out,” said Dan Mehan, president and CEO of the Missouri Chamber. “What we have found through research, polling, and talking to business leaders across the state is that child care is a workforce issue, and it is an economic issue for the state. We applaud Rep. Shields for sponsoring the bill, as well as Gov. Mike Parson for highlighting child care as a top priority in his State of the State address. It’s time for Missouri to become a national leader in addressing this crisis.”
In 2021, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation and the Missouri Chamber released a report examining the impact of child care challenges on Missouri’s economy. The report showed that Missouri misses out on an estimated $1.35 billion annually, including a $280 million annual loss in tax revenue, due to child care issues.
When responding to the Missouri Chamber’s CEO Poll, 78 percent of business leaders said the expense and difficulty in finding child care keeps a significant number of Missourians out of the workforce.
HB 870 offers four types of tax credits to expand the capacity of child care providers and help businesses offer child care benefits to support employee recruitment and retention.
The bill now moves to the Senate for consideration.
