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Committee advances childcare recruitment and retention bill after hours of testimony from providers and chambers
Summary
Senate Bill 23-06 would create a childcare workforce recruitment and retention program that directs funds to providers for wages and benefits; the committee approved the bill as amended and referred it to appropriations after extensive testimony from providers, chambers and local officials.
After an extended public hearing with multiple providers and local chambers of commerce, the Senate Workforce Development Committee voted to give Senate Bill 23‑06 a do‑pass recommendation as amended and referred the measure to the Appropriations Committee.
Sponsor Senator Kathy Hogan told the committee the bill is intended to stabilize the child care sector by directing funds to providers specifically for wages and benefits and by simplifying payment mechanisms. Hogan described this bill as part of a broader package of child care work that followed House Bill 1540 and several implementation efforts; she said some earlier components of that package have not yet been fully implemented.
Providers, the Chamber of Commerce and local economic development officials told the committee the sector faces severe staffing and pay pressure: testimony said many child care workers earn $12–$15 per hour without benefits; infant care is especially expensive because licensing requires staffing ratios of 1 staff to 4 infants. Bill Baumann, CEO of the Missouri Valley Family YMCA, told senators his organization cares for several hundred children in the 0–5 age group and urged larger per‑slot payments, saying the bill’s proposed amounts would only partially address shortfalls.
Key features discussed in testimony and the draft bill included: - Payments based on enrolled children (providers must have children receiving services on the premises), rather than licensed slots; the sponsor said that change lowers program cost compared with reimbursing all licensed slots. - Differential monthly payment rates for ages: testimony referenced higher costs for infants (1:4 ratio), $30 for toddlers and $15 for school‑age children as example rate levels discussed in drafts. - A disqualification for serious licensing violations that jeopardize immediate child safety; minor corrective actions would not automatically disqualify a provider. - Annual reporting by providers receiving funds to demonstrate wage and benefit increases and program outcomes.
Several witnesses – including municipal economic development directors and chamber executives – said the program could both reduce provider payroll burdens and help keep family rates from rising. Providers asked for larger per‑slot payments to create a material wage impact; some suggested $100 per infant slot as an example of a larger benefit.
Committee members offered and adopted an amendment in committee to adjust the draft before referring the bill to appropriations. After debate and recorded votes, the committee recommended a do‑pass as amended and sent the bill to appropriations for funding consideration.
Senators asked agencies and sponsors to monitor program outcomes around 0–3 capacity and to coordinate reporting to help measure whether wage and benefit requirements are being met.
