TKW Consulting

The truth is Minnesota taxpayers provide significant subsidies for child care through our welfare Minnesota Family Investment Program and our generous sliding fee programs. In fact, our sliding fee program is in the top five in the nation in terms of income eligibility (250 percent of poverty – more than $50,000 per year for a family of four).

Add to this equally generous federal and state tax benefits and you have hundreds of
millions of dollars each year helping families with their child care expenses. Thank you, taxpayers.

The liberal “never enough” rhetoric would have you believe our child care subsidies have been gutted in recent years. False! We did lower the income eligibility in our sliding fee subsidy program from 300 percent to 250 percent of poverty in fairness to hardworking taxpayers. At 250 percent we are higher than any state in our region and in the top five in the nation – still very, very generous.

We also set the entry point to sliding fee subsidy at 175 percent to be sure that we are helping the neediest – no savings were involved.

Did you know that we allow these subsidized families to access virtually the most expensive child care in Minnesota, expenses unaffordable to most unsubsidized families?The system allowed access to 75 percent of the child care center market. Taxpayers paid full market price up to this level for each class of child care.

Our reform action was to freeze the upper limit rate for the last three years. Child care rates that were increased were paid in full unless they went over the 75 percent limit. We did not cut child care rates!

Other reforms included tighter controls on absent day payment. Why should the taxpayer pay for child care for a family that chronically abuses the actual use of child care by frequent and inexcusable absences?

These and other reforms saved money while improving the efficiency and integrity of our
child care subsidy programs. Saving taxpayer money by improving the integrity of our public programs is a long way from “ruthless cuts.”

News reports recently announced that Minnesota’s day care costs are among the most expensive in the nation. Last November, the press reported that only a quarter of the state’s child care centers programs for ages 3-5 received high marks, most meeting only minimal standards.

At that time, the liberal “never enough” advocates said it was because we were not willing to spend enough. Somehow this recent report about high costs begs the question as to just how much is enough. How about taking a hard look at the delivery system and its efficiency instead of simply blaming taxpayers for not giving enough? Is it possible that the huge amount of taxpayer money in the child care system helps inflates expenses?

Let me be clear that I greatly respect the dedication and professionalism of child care
provider direct care staff. They provide the loving care our children and parents cherish. They certainly do not get rich doing so. So where does all the money go?

I wish I knew. I do suspect a significant amount of overhead, bureaucracy and wasteful regulations are large contributors. The complex and wasteful system of taxpayer subsidy is another major contributor. Recent legislative audits have found many faults in our rate-setting system.

There is no question that affordable quality child care is important to Minnesota families and our economy. But, I do not believe that a limitless “tax-and-spend” philosophy will work. We need conscientious and thoughtful reforms and a system that is better balanced and fair.

Fran Bradley, R-Rochester, is a member of the Minnesota House and chairman of its Health Policy and Finance Committee.

// posted by Tammy Wachter @ 4:20 PM