Child Care Tax Credit Nears Special Session Finish Line | News, sports, jobs

Photo by: W.Va. Legislative photography

House Minority Leader Pro Tempore Kayla Young, D-Kanawha, said Monday she supports Gov. Jim Justice’s child care tax credit, but said the credit would not be immediately helpful for working families.

CHARLESTON — The child care tax credit first proposed by Gov. Jim Justice during the regular legislative session earlier this year is now a day closer to reality after the House passed it, but a small group of Republican lawmakers questioned the need for it .

The House of Representatives passed Bill 226 on Monday afternoon with a vote of 86 to 5, which provides for an income tax credit for children and dependent care.

The bill will now be considered by the state Senate today, where its version of the bill, Senate Bill 2026, is on third reading after being adjourned for over a day.

If passed, HB 226 would provide a personal income tax credit equal to 50% of the allowable federal child and dependent care credit, retroactive to January 1, for those already receiving the federal tax credit. The credit could be returned up to $4.2 million to eligible taxpayers, according to a tax notice from the U.S. Treasury Department.

“We are reflecting the image of the federal program … to help parents manage their child care in accordance with federal guidelines,” said House Finance Committee Chairman Vernon Criss, R-Wood, as he explained the bill Monday afternoon on the floor of the House house.

Approximately 16,000 families in West Virginia receive the federal child care tax credit, which amounts to $454 per family per month. With the passage of HB 226, the state child care tax credit would only provide these families with an additional tax credit of $225 per month. The maximum tax credit benefit for a family with a qualifying child could be nearly $1,500 per year.

According to a recent Department of Human Services report, there are 1,391 licensed child care providers in the state with an average monthly cost of $672 per month per child. Another report from the West Virginia Chamber of Commerce found that 24 counties have fewer than 250 licensed early childhood education slots, while 12 counties have fewer than 100 slots. More than 20,000 childcare places are needed in the country.

HB 226 received bipartisan support. House Minority Leader Pro Tempore Kayla Young, D-Kanawha, is part of a House task force addressing the need for affordable and available child care. She voted for HB 226 but said more work is needed on the issue.

“I’m really excited about this bill, but I don’t think it goes far enough,” Young said. “This is a great recognition. I’m excited to help with this, but it helps in hindsight. It will not help with access to childcare. It will help people who can already find it and afford it… In case you don’t know, many daycares are closed. We need to do a lot more when it comes to child care.”

However, the bill was opposed by five members of the House of Representatives: Del. Geoff Foster, R-Putnam; Del. Laura Kimble, R-Harrison; Del. Todd Longanacre, R-Greenbrier; Del. Henry Dillon, R-Wayne; and Del. Elias Coop-Gonzalez, R-Randolph.

Both Coop-Gonzalez and Dillion said HB 226 could create a scenario of legal inequality between families with working parents and families where one parent is at home caring for and educating children. They also said the bill could create incentives for women to enter the workforce.

“I just worry that this bill might favor one lifestyle over another,” Coop-Gonzalez said. “I definitely don’t want to disadvantage people who want to start a traditional family.”

“We may be in a situation where we are encouraging mothers to leave home and enter the workforce when they would otherwise be on their own… without this government coercion in their lives, they may not make that decision,” said Dillon, a public school teacher whose wife is at home caring for their five children.

Del. Mike Pushkin, D-Kanawha, pointed to the state’s low labor force participation rate, which stands at 49 nationally, as one of the reasons for HB 226.

“Do you know what incentives there are for mothers to start working life? “You have rent to pay, bills to pay, groceries to pay and a child to take care of,” said Pushkin, chairman of the state Democratic Party. “We have the lowest labor force participation rates in the country here in West Virginia. This is the least we can do to address (child care), and it doesn’t even scratch the surface.”

Dillon fought back, pointing to dictatorships – like North Korea and China – with high labor force participation. Dillion said it should be West Virginians’ decision not to enter the workforce.

“They decided what they wanted to do with their lives. They were deciding whether they wanted to apply somewhere or stay home with their kids,” Dillon said. “If I make a mistake today, I will err on the side of freedom.”