Senator Murray, MomsRising, and local leaders spoke with Seattle parents to discuss the challenges and solutions to the issues parents are facing today
ICYMI: Senator Murray’s Child Care Plan Would Increase Access to Child Care for Washington State Families, Lower Costs According to New Report – MORE HERE
ICYMI: Amid Omicron Frustration and Anxiety, Senator Murray Pushes Administration for a Clear Path Forward to Expand Testing, Keep Schools Open, and Protect Communities – MORE HERE
Senator Murray: “What I am focused on is making sure the federal government is doing absolutely everything in its power to save lives, keep kids safely in school, and give families back some certainty and stability.”
***WATCH VIDEO OF THE TOWN HALL HERE***
(Washington, D.C.) – Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, and MomsRising hosted a virtual town hall with local parents to discuss many issues that matter most to Seattle area families. During the event, Senator Murray provided an update on her work in Congress on behalf of Washington state’s kids and families—touching on many of the top concerns for parents in recent months: the cost and availability of child care, keeping our kids in school safely, and other important priorities like the expanded Child Tax Credit.
“As a mom and a grandmother, this is one of the toughest times to be a parent I can remember. Child care is way too expensive and way too hard to find. Schooling during the pandemic can turn your whole life upside down on any given day—not to mention how hard this has been on our kids—on their mental health and their learning. And so many parents are struggling to just find their footing—they need an economy that works for them, not just the wealthiest Americans and the giant corporations,” said Senator Murray. “What I am focused on is making sure the federal government is doing absolutely everything in its power to save lives, keep kids safely in school, and give families back some certainty and stability.”
“Build Back Better hasn’t passed yet, but I haven’t given up, because I just feel really strongly that it should not be this expensive and tough to raise a family in our country. So my priority is getting something to President Biden’s desk that will dramatically lower costs for Washington state families and make things easier,” Senator Murray continued. “That means people in our state being able to find and afford child care, or paying a whole lot less for prescription drugs—capping insulin costs at $35 per month, for example.”
Senator Murray was joined during the event by said Kristin Rowe-Finkbeiner, Executive Director and CEO of MomsRising; Lauren Hipp, National Director of Early Learning and Washington State for MomsRising; and Dr. Stephan Blanford, the Executive Director of the Children’s Alliance. Hipp discussed the need for Senator Murray’s child care plan in Washington state, and other federal policies that MomsRising has advocated for on behalf of parents. Dr. Blanford highlighted the challenges he has heard from Seattle parents, and what the Children’s Alliance is doing to advocate for kids and families.
“MomsRising is grateful to Sen. Murray for holding this Town Hall and for her tireless work championing the issues that matter most to working moms, businesses and families,” said Kristin Rowe-Finkbeiner, MomsRising Executive Director and CEO. “She is a powerhouse in lifting Washington families and in pressing for the Build Back Better Act, which would finally create the care infrastructure our country’s moms, families, businesses and economy urgently need. Moms in Washington and across the country stand with Sen. Murray in fighting to reduce child care and Pre-K costs, extend the expanded Child Tax Credit, provide paid family and medical leave, make home- and community-based services available to seniors and people with disabilities, provide protections so immigrants can fully participate in the workforce, and create millions of good jobs for women. We urgently need these policies, while the pandemic is raging, and we will need them when it’s over.”
“In 2021 as in no other year in recent history, we saw the potent and direct impact that federal policy can have on the lives of children and families in Washington State. Children’s Alliance appreciates that Senator Murray has consistently prioritized the needs of children and their families, especially those furthest from their vast potential. And we look forward to working with her, other members of Congress and the Washington State Legislature to enact racially-equitable child-centered policies, so that every child has what they need,” said Dr. Stephan Blanford, Executive Director of the Children’s Alliance.
During the town hall, Senator Murray highlighted the work she did as Chair of the HELP Committee to secure much needed support for Washington state’s COVID-19 response, to help keep schools open, to support small businesses, and more in the American Rescue Plan. This included billions for tests, vaccines, and health care and public health support, including nearly $230 million for testing in Washington state schools, more than $1.8 billion in COVID relief for Washington state schools to help keep them open and help address learning loss, more than $635 million in relief to support quality, affordable child care in the state, and more, with funding still going out to communities across the state.
“Thanks to the American Rescue Plan, we got shots into arms, reopened schools safely, got support for small businesses, and delivered some really important federal dollars for state and local governments keeping health care workers and first responders on the job. This bill made a huge difference—6.4 million jobs back into the economy since just one year ago. There’s more work to do, but we’ve seen a stronger, and much faster economic recovery because of the bill Democrats wrote and passed,” said Senator Murray.
Since the passage of the American Rescue Plan, Senator Murray has also conducted vigorous oversight of the Biden administration’s COVID-19 response, most recently pushing the administration for a clear path forward to expand testing, keep schools open, protect communities. Senator Murray has also held HELP Committee hearings on the worsening mental health and substance use crisis during the pandemic.
“When it comes to the COVID-19 response, here’s my bottom line—Parents need to be able to make plans for the future, not to mention just the morning, without fearing that their kid’s school—or even the everyday things they used to take for granted—will be upended by this virus. We all want that, and I am focused on making sure the federal government is using every tool at its disposal to make that a reality,” Senator Murray continued.
Senator Murray highlighted her work to secure passage of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which will create jobs, safer roads, more public transit, and more for families across the state. Senator Murray also emphasized that she is continuing to push for the Build Back Better Act in the Senate, which includes her plan to lower child care costs and expand coverage, offer parents the option of free pre-K for three-and-four-year olds, and also renews the expanded Child Tax Credit, which Senator Murray has pushed for. On top of these measures, Build Back Better would lower costs for families on housing and medication, establish paid family leave, combat the climate crisis, and address other issues Senator Murray has heard from parents.
Senator Murray took questions during the town hall on a range of issues, from breaking down her child care proposal, to highlighting her efforts to lower the cost of prescription drugs, to how she’s fighting to extend the expanded Child Tax Credit. See full video of her answers and the entire town hall HERE.
Senator Murray knows the challenges that working parents face and has spent her career advocating for parents, first running for office after a male legislator in Olympia told her she couldn’t make a difference in trying to save her kids’ preschool program because she was, “just a mom in tennis shoes.” Since being elected to the Senate, she has been a leading voice for parents in Congress, and has met repeatedly with parents from across the state to bring their stories and concerns back with her to the other Washington.
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