DENVER — Lawmakers in Colorado have introduced a measure aimed at helping working families struggling with rising child care costs.
The bill would allow families earning $25,000 a year or less to bump their state credit from the current 50 percent up to 80 percent of what they get from the federal tax credit. Natalie Wood, senior policy analyst with the Bell Policy Center, said she believes the move would be a smart investment.
"A tax credit for working Colorado families to help pay for child care is a pretty direct and efficient way to help them with the rising, painful child care costs that they're facing,” Wood said. “It helps people go to work. It's really infrastructure for our state."
Wood pointed to a recent report by Congress' Joint Economic Committee showing that improved access to affordable child care would lead to more women entering and staying in the workforce. And it could increase the national GDP by as much as $600 million annually.
She added that access to high-quality early learning leads to improved health outcomes for children, and better wages as adults.
Rich Jones, director of policy and research at Bell, said Colorado families are being squeezed by rising housing, health care and child care costs at the same time that their earnings are falling flat.
"We did some analysis that shows that average weekly wages in Colorado have only gone up $33 in total per week between 2000 and 2016 when you adjust for inflation,” Jones said.
The legislation was introduced by House Speaker Crisanta Duran, a Denver Democrat, and co-sponsored by Sen. Beth Martinez Humenik, a Thornton Republican. The bill was assigned to the House Finance Committee. A fiscal note, outlining the potential cost of the measure to state coffers, has not yet been added.
More information is available at BellPolicy.org.
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More than one in five Coloradans are considered obese, a chronic medical condition leading to serious health risks and a new study links obesity to income inequality, low minimum wages and lack of access to healthy foods.
Sophie Mariam, labor policy analyst for the Colorado Fiscal Institute, said many of the state's most vulnerable workers turn to low-cost fast foods, which are high in both calories and fat, because they cannot find or afford healthier alternatives.
"Lower-income communities and communities of color are more likely to live in food deserts, and more likely to make low wages," Mariam explained. "When folks make a higher minimum wage, they are more likely to have the income that they need to access healthier, more nutritious food for themselves and their families."
Researchers at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health said addressing obesity is not only about encouraging people to change their behavior. They said real change will require creating environments where healthy food choices are the easiest choice. It means giving workers bigger paychecks and improving food access in neighborhoods not seen as profitable for grocery chains.
Colorado's minimum wage, at $14.42 an hour, is the ninth-highest in the nation and a lot higher than the federal minimum of $7.25. But to earn a living wage, a single adult without kids needs to bring in at least $25 an hour.
Despite common stereotypes, Mariam pointed out most minimum-wage workers are not teenagers getting valuable work experience.
"A majority of people earning a minimum wage in Colorado are adults, over 24, who are financially supporting or providing for their family," Mariam emphasized. "It is really critical that these folks have wages that can allow them to be economically self-sufficient."
Colorado lawmakers recently removed barriers for municipalities across the state to increase their wage floor above the state minimum. The city of Boulder recently raised its minimum wage to $15.57 an hour starting next year, which is still far below the city's estimated living wage of $26.36 for individuals.
Mariam hopes the study will be a wake-up call.
"Local elected officials should see research like this as evidence that we need to step up and ensure that minimum wages provide an adequate standard of living for all families across Colorado," Mariam urged.
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Support for programs providing direct cash would benefit families in need in Washington state, a new report showed.
About one in four Washingtonians struggle to meet their basic needs because of low income. The Washington State Budget and Policy Center analyzed two programs currently implemented in the state: the Working Families Tax Credit and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, and guaranteed basic income, which is being piloted in some parts of the state.
Leila Reynolds, campaign communications manager for the Washington State Budget and Policy Center and the report's co-author, laid out principles to ensure the programs benefit the most people possible.
"Those principles include making sure that cash programs are targeted to people who most need it; that cash is recurring so that people can depend on it," Reynolds outlined. "Usually monthly; that it's unrestricted so that families can use it in whatever way they need."
The Working Families Tax Credit provides rebates up to $1,255 to low and middle income families. The Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program is a federal benefit administered by the state. The Growing Resilience in Tacoma program is one example of a guaranteed basic income program in the state. It received nearly $2 million from the state legislature in 2023.
Reynolds argued restrictions are holding the programs back, such as the 60 month limit for TANF and age restrictions on the Working Families Tax Credit, which keep young adults without children from benefiting. She noted the public benefits system addresses secondary needs like housing and food assistance but doesn't target the core issue of poverty, which is a lack of cash recipients could be used as needed.
"Research has shown that overwhelmingly recipients of cash transfer programs use that money for essential needs, like food, financial emergencies," Reynolds stressed. "We know that these programs work and we just want to make sure that they're expanded."
Reynolds also notes direct cash programs have ripple effects benefiting society.
"You see health impacts," Reynolds observed. "There's been research that's shown increase in brain activity in babies, improved maternal health outcomes, improved educational outcomes, reducing recidivism, improving employment outcomes."
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State officials in Maine said they are working to expand the number of registered apprenticeship programs to help counter a persistent worker shortage.
The state hopes to add 75,000 workers to the economy over the next five years by growing career pathways in clean energy, health care, and construction.
Joan Dolan, director of apprenticeship and strategic partnerships for the Maine Department of Labor, said the number of available programs has doubled over the past few years and all are currently full.
"There is huge interest and huge need," Dolan observed. "We've been working hard for years to expand our programming and it's really started to take hold and take off."
Dolan said 90% of apprentices who complete their programs are still working for their employer a year after graduation. Studies show they'll earn at least $300,000 more over their lifetimes compared to their peers.
The majority of apprentices in Maine are in the construction industry as federal dollars continue to boost the clean energy sector. The state has worked to recruit more women into the trade along with a growing number of new Mainers. Dolan pointed out even high schoolers are taking advantage, including in the town of Skowhegan, where a group of students is earning income and skills through electrical apprenticeships after class.
"We also have developed bank teller apprenticeship programs," Dolan explained. "There's banks right in the school, so the kids are getting high school graduation credit as well as earning a paycheck and learning a job skill."
Dolan stressed apprenticeships offer lucrative career pathways for students not interested in attending college or for the many rural students who simply cannot afford it. She added anyone can become an apprentice as long as they're at least 16 years old and are committed to furthering their education both in the classroom and on the job.
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