93.9 The Eagle – The News and Talk of Columbia, MO
A key mid-Missouri state lawmaker is optimistic about bipartisan child care tax credit legislation being approved by the Missouri House in 2024, but he’s not sure about the Senate. Missouri House Workforce and Infrastructure Development Committee vice chair Willard Haley (R-Eldon) represents three mid-Missouri counties in Jefferson City.
“I know that we’re going to face some challenges this next session probably again in the Senate. It seems like there is quite a few individuals running for statewide offices that might want to kind of hold things up again,” Representative Haley says.
A bipartisan bill died on the 2023 session’s final day in May due to a Missouri Senate filibuster on unrelated issues.
The Missouri Chamber of Commerce and Industry says the Show-Me State has a child care crisis that is costing Missouri more than $1-billion annually. That number doesn’t surprise Representative Haley, who tells 939 the Eagle that child care is a top priority for voters and businesses in his bright-red GOP district.
“I hear as a number one complaint from both employers and also those in the workforce that affordable and safe child care is a very big concern. And it’s a critical factor in getting our workforce back to where it needs to be,” says Haley.
Haley represents Moniteau, Morgan and Cooper counties in Jefferson City. State Rep. Brenda Shields’ (R-St. Joseph) bipartisan child care tax credit bill died on the 2023 session’s final day in May due to a Missouri Senate filibuster on unrelated issues.
State Sen. Lauren Arthur (D-Kansas City) was the Senate sponsor of the same bill that Representative Shields carried in the House.
