Dawn Moore, first lady of Maryland, addresses the weight of childcare in Maryland

By Tashi McQueen
AFRO Staff Writer
tmcqueen@afro.com

Dawn Moore, first lady of Maryland, attended United Way of Central Maryland’s 2024 Women’s Forum on Sept. 26, addressing the need to elevate women and change childcare.

Moore said she’s “proud of the work this administration is doing to provide more access so that women can go back into the workforce” after having children.

Through the fiscal year 2025 budget, Gov. Wes Moore (D) and state legislators increased funds toward the state’s Child Care Scholarship program by $270 million. The program provides services for around 30,000 children.

During the forum, speakers pointed out the hardships families experience through the cost of child care. 

“You should not have to make a decision between whether you can take a job or stay with your children,” said  Moore on Sept. 26.

According to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, 58 percent of parents exit the workforce because they can’t find suitable childcare.

“You can’t work without child care,” said Reshma Saujani, author and founder and CEO of Moms First, a movement to support mothers in the workforce. 

Saujani pointed out that when child costs are unreasonable or child care is unavailable women are often left to pause their careers to take care of the children.

Dawn Moore highlighted the importance of mothers’ ability to find quality child care and return to the workforce.

“We are needed in the workforce,” said Dawn Moore. “We make up over half the population.”

According to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, women make up 47 percent of all American employees and are essential in the modern workforce.

Baltimore City Councilwoman Phylicia Porter (D-District 10) spoke with the AFRO and offered a deeper look into how childcare costs impact Baltimore City.

“When we look at the disproportionate level of the rates of child care versus what African-American women in the City of Baltimore are taking home, obviously a disparity,” said Porter before a city council meeting on Sept. 30.

According to the Maryland Family Network, a non-profit, the estimated cost of child care in Baltimore City is $22,983. With a median family income of $72, 972, Baltimore families are spending about 31.5 percent of their median household income on child care, the highest percentage for any county in the state. 

The Maryland Family Network’s findings reflect a distinct financial burden on families in Baltimore City, a region where approximately 60 percent of residents are Black.

Porter offered some solutions.

“It’s a two-pronged approach. You can’t have good daycares without good daycare providers,” said Porter. “Making sure that we combat the workforce along with the price of childcare, that’s how we’re going to solve that issue.”

Porter laid out some ways federal, state and local governments can and should address the cost of childcare.

“From a federal level, tax incentives for families,” said Porter. “At the state level, making sure that we provide incentives for opening a daycare for daycare workers childcare subsidies for families.”

Porter said city legislators can “look at different zoning options where we can put daycares” in certain areas so they are not over-concentrated in any one location.

She also said city legislators can provide partnerships through philanthropic opportunities, helping daycares remain in underserved communities.

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