Opinion: Collaboration between local and federal governments covers our childcare needs | Opinion

If you’re a parent or employer, the child care crisis in the Yakima Valley probably isn’t news to you.

According to Washington STEM, severe provider shortages and the high cost of care have left nearly half of Yakima County’s children unable to access licensed care.

The average annual cost of child care for a family with two children is $22,752 — about a third of a typical family’s total household income, reports Michelle Smith of South Central Workforce.

And that had a devastating impact on local families and the local economy.

According to a recent column by Jonathan Smith, executive director of the Yakima County Development Association, 4,000 area workers have been forced to quit their jobs and stay home to care for their children. This, in turn, costs the region’s companies around $92 million annually.

But thanks to a federal grant in 2023 through U.S. Sen. Patty Murray’s office, local organizations are coming up with some solutions.

South Central Workforce administers the grant, which has provided $1.5 million to Yakima and Kittitas counties. Subsequent partnerships with the Yakima County Development Association and the Yakima Valley Community Foundation have enabled programs such as YCDA’s Childcare Business Accelerator Program, which provides business training and consulting for child care providers. According to Jonathan Smith, the program has supported 72 local childcare businesses and 147 entrepreneurs to date.

In collaboration with YCDA, South Central Workforce and the Yakima Valley Community Foundation have also launched some programs of their own. Programs that pave the way for more and better local child care options. Programs that guide families to affordable options. Programs that help employers help their employees stay on the job.

They all add up to an encouraging community response to a problem that affects us all in one way or another.

South Central Workforce’s grassroots collaboration with YCDA and the Yakima Valley Community Foundation is commendable. These organizations make it work, and that makes all the difference.

But it’s also important to note that the strength of federal aid is the strength.

Of course, Senator Murray is not the first government official to release money to meet regional needs. Elected officials have done their best for years to support an endless list of local beneficiaries — agriculture, schools, roads, water projects, and so on.

As it turns out, the government is not the bogeyman some would have you believe. And in this case, it is gratifying to see what public and private collaboration can achieve toward a common goal.

The Yakima Herald-Republic’s editorials reflect the collective opinions of the newspaper’s local editorial board.