Child Care Stabilization Needed in ND

Child care centers in North Dakota are in trouble. Unable to keep up with the cost of wages for employee retention, many day cares are struggling to make ends meet.

The story of a child care center closing at the end of this month in Bismarck illuminates the looming crisis. When child care centers close, families are left scrambling:

“I’m hearing from a lot of panicky parents,” said Ellene Lang, the director of the Early Childhood Learning Center on Divide Avenue.

Her facility may have room for a couple of preschool-age kids, but the infant and toddler rooms are full until 2014.

It is a similar situation for LaRae Dockter, the director of Discovery Childcare Center. She said she usually receives five to 10 calls a day from parents looking for child care but her phone has been ringing off the hook so far this week. She has had King’s Kids parents break down in tears in her office.

Day care facilities contacted by the Tribune indicated that child care in Bismarck has become increasingly hard to come by. Most day care and preschool facilities are running at capacity and facing their own staffing issues.

A bill is up for consideration in the House of Representative, HB 1422. HB 1422 is designed to help stabilize child care during the economic boom in ND. The bill would allocate $15 million to child care centers to help meet the income gap.

The Human Services Committee of the ND House of Human Services is deep in discussion on this bill and likely to work on it today. Monday, February 11, 2013. Time is of the essence and the members of the House Human Services Committee need to hear strong support for the bill. The evidence is overwhelming that investment in childcare a worthwhile expenditure.

Contact members of the House Human Services Committee to urge a DO PASS recommendation: 

Chairman 

Representative Robin Weisz (R)

Vice Chairman

Representative Curt Hofstad (R)

Legislative Members 

Representative Dick Anderson (R) 

Representative Chuck Damschen (R) 

Representative Alan Fehr (R) 

Representative Dwight Kiefert (R) 

Representative Vernon R. Laning (R) 

Representative Alex Looysen (R) 

Representative Gail Mooney (D) 

Representative Naomi Muscha (D) 

Representative Kylie Oversen (D) 

Representative Todd Porter (R) 

Representative Peter F. Silbernagel (R)