Child Care Bill Passes Senate in Sharp Debate

Amid bitter partisan wrangling and the threat of a presidential veto, the Senate Friday approved a Democratic-backed child care bill that would provide $1.75 billion annually for low-income parents and some $2 billion in tax credits for day care programs.

The legislation was approved on a voice vote and now moves to the House, which is expected to begin consideration of its own child care proposals next week.

“This bill does not provide aid to every child in this country who needs it,” Senate Majority Leader George J. Mitchell of Maine said. “But it is a significant step forward and a true compromise with both sides. That’s what we’ve accomplished here.”

‘Candidate for a Veto’

Hours before the final vote, however, Bush Administration spokesman Marlin Fitzwater declared that the measure is unacceptable to the President and is “a candidate for a veto.” Although Bush has not ruled out a compromise, he has said that there are “major flaws” in the legislation approved by the Senate.

Senate Republicans also criticized the Democratic measure, saying that the fight to pass a child care bill is far from over. Minority Leader Bob Dole of Kansas warned that “we’re a long way from any child care bill, because this was not bipartisan. Anybody who breaks out the champagne should realize that what we did today is only a first step.”

During seven days of often vitriolic debate, Democrats and Republicans clashed over radically different approaches to child care. They also battled for the high ground on an issue that both parties believe is a growing national concern.

Currently, the federal government spends an estimated $7 billion each year on child care programs. But much of that is in the form of a tax credit claimed mostly by middle-income parents and both parties contend that more should be done for the working poor.

“Everybody around here is for child care, the last time I looked,” Dole said. “We just disagree pretty strongly on how to proceed. I don’t know if we can find a middle ground.”

Earlier in the week, Democrats won a showdown vote with Republicans over rival blueprints for a child care bill. They turned back a series of GOP amendments Friday that would have gutted the pending legislation and reinstated key elements of the Republican proposal.

On a key 53-44 vote, the Senate rejected a motion by Dole to delete a Democratic-sponsored tax credit for low-income parents who buy health insurance for their children. In its place, Dole had proposed expanding the existing Earned Income Tax Credit, saying that would give low-income parents more funds to spend on day care.

Hoping to win Republican support, Democrats voted to incorporate some elements of the original GOP plan into their child care legislation, including a version of the earned income tax credit. But Republicans continued to hammer away at the Democratic measure, saying that the two sides remained far apart.

Under the Democratic plan, the government would distribute $1.75 billion in grants and direct aid annually to low-income parents for day care programs. States would be required to establish licensing standards for child care before receiving any aid.

The aid would be available for children up to age 13. California would receive approximately $168.4 million annually in federal funds under the Democratic measure, based on the number of potentially eligible children.

In addition, the measure would provide about $2 billion in tax credits for low-income families in each of the next five years. These would include increases in the existing dependent care and earned income tax credits, as well as the new credit for health insurance.

By contrast, Bush and Senate Republicans had offered a combination of tax credits and $400 million for unspecified day care programs. They contended that the Democratic plan would create a massive bureaucracy for day care, while their own proposal maximized “parental choice.” More important, they said, the GOP tax credits would provide assistance for mothers who choose to stay at home and take care of their children.

Sen. Pete Wilson (R-Calif.) said that Congress should not discriminate against women who want to work, but cited research showing that children profit greatly when parents stay at home to take care of them, especially in their formative years.

“We should be encouraging women to stay at home with children” during these years, Wilson said, adding that the Democratic measure “does not provide enough incentives for the stay-at-home Mom.”

Democrats angrily responded that their measure provided ample benefits for mothers who do not work. Sen. Christopher J. Dodd (D-Conn.), a key architect of the bill, noted that most tax benefits in the Democratic proposal could be shared by parents who work or stay at home.

The Senate also rejected a proposal by Wilson that would have permitted some states to take federal grant funds for child care and use them instead to provide additional tax credits.

Wilson said that this would give states more flexibility but Dodd charged that the amendment would “all but destroy” the $1.75-billion day care grant program that had been hammered out during months of negotiations.