Res 1406-2020

By Council Members Rivera and Chin Whereas, The outbreak of the new coronavirus, COVID-19, has sparked the largest economic recession since the Great Depression, according to the International Monetary Fund; and Whereas, In May, 2020, The Washington Post indicated that the country's fragile child care system is at risk of collapse from the reduced enrollments and revenues caused by the COVID-19 crisis; and Whereas, According to the Center for American Progress, the COVID-19 pandemic has put nearly half of the country's child care programs in danger of permanent closure; and Whereas, Child care providers that ensure children are cared for during the COVID-19 pandemic allow essential workers on the front lines to serve our communities and support our economy; and Whereas, The closure of New York City's schools, the nation's largest school district, has directly impacted the well-being of over 1.1 million students by sending families scrambling for resources and child care during a time of economic uncertainty; and Whereas, The Center for American Progress has emphasized that disproportionate effects in the child care crisis currently keep many women out of the workforce due to the lack of available child care programs; and Whereas, The New York State Department of Labor reported that New York City's unemployment rate was 20.4 percent in June 2020, growing over two percent from May 2020 and a rise of 16.4 percent from June 2019; and Whereas, The Child Care is Essential Act, H.R.7027, introduced by U.S. Representative Rosa DeLauro, and S.3874, introduced by U.S. Senator Patty Murray, would establish a $50 billion stabilization fund to award grants to child care providers during and after the COVID-19 public health emergency; and Whereas, Other industries have received large bailouts to ensure they survive the COVID-19 pandemic, yet child care has not seen the major investments needed to stabilize the industry during the crisis; and Whereas, To help our economy and families thrive, workers in New York City and across the country should be provided with the child care resources and support needed to help them return to work; now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the Council of the City of New York calls on the United States Congress to pass, and the President to sign, H.R.7027 and S.3874, the Child Care is Essential Act. AH LS #15594 08/20/2020 1