Capping Child Care Costs Could Save Families Thousands
High-quality child care is unaffordable for many working families in the U.S., but capping child care costs could change that by saving them thousands of dollars per year, according to a new brief from the Economic Policy Institute. Investment by federal and state governments to cap out-of-pocket child care costs at 10 percent of household income would save families as much as $8,000 per child per year, according to the brief. The authors argue that increased access to quality child care also could boost national GDP by as much as $210 billion as parents re-enter the labor market.