Governor Shapiro Came To Bristol To Talk About Child Care
by Alex Lloyd Gross
The PA State Budget has just been passed and with that comes a new item in the budget. $25 million set aside for retention and recruitment of child care workers. This translates to about $450.00 annually in bonus for those workers. Currently, there is a 3000 person vacancy across the state for child care workers.
Just after 10:30 AM, Governor Josh Shapiro went to Children of God Educational Services at 414 Mill Street to talk about this. Getting this into the budget was a bipartisan effort and he had to “have patience” to get this accomplished.
Secretary of Human Services Dr. Val Arkoosh and State Rep Tina Davis showed up to praise the program. During the program, it was brought up that this kind of funding was seriously lacking and she is glad that politicians on both sides of the aisle were able to come together and make this a reality.
o address workforce shortages and expand child care availability, the 2025-26 budget establishes a $25 million Child Care Staff Recruitment and Retention Program, which will provide roughly $450 annually per employee to licensed Child Care Works (CCW) providers. These bonuses will support approximately 55,000 child care workers and help stabilize the child care sector.
“When parents can’t find affordable, reliable care, they can’t work — and our economy suffers,” said Governor Shapiro. “We’ve lowered costs by tripling the Child and Dependent Care Enhancement Tax Credit for nearly 219,000 working families, but affordability isn’t enough — we also have to expand access. That’s why we’re making investments to help child care centers hire and retain talented educators. These bonuses will help strengthen the workforce, open more slots for children, and make sure families across Pennsylvania can find the care they need.”
Alex Lloyd Gross Photo Delaware Valley News.com State Rep Tina Davis (D) listens to Governor Shapiro’s remarks.
The recruitment and retention bonuses will kick in this year. The $450 might not seem like a lot of money, but to young people just starting out in their career , it makes a difference.
“It takes a village to raise a child — and our child care workers, teachers, and caregivers are the heart of that village,” said Representative Tina Davis. “I’m grateful to them for the essential work they do every day, and I’m grateful to Governor Shapiro and Secretary Arkoosh for working tirelessly to deliver a budget that truly supports working families. The Governor never gave up — this bipartisan, compromise budget delivers real results for the people of Pennsylvania.”
In addition to child care investments, the Governor’s new Working Pennsylvanians Tax Credit (WPTC) — created in the 2025–26 budget — will deliver $193 million in tax relief to 940,000 working Pennsylvanians beginning next tax season. Modeled after the federal Earned Income Tax Credit, the new state-level credit equals 10 percent of the federal benefit. Anyone who qualifies for the federal EITC will now automatically receive both credits, reducing taxes owed and putting more money back into the pockets of hardworking Pennsylvanians.