Child care credit a good step for W.Va. families

Members of the West Virginia House of Delegates did the right thing Monday by passing a child and dependent care credit against the personal income tax. Though some believe we should be doing even more on the child care front, getting the ball rolling was essential.
All but five House lawmakers understood that.
It should have been a no-brainer.
“We’re mirroring the image of the federal program … to help parents be able to do child care along the same lines of the federal guidelines,” said House Finance Committee Chairman Vernon Criss, R-Wood.
But knowing how hard it is for struggling West Virginia families to even find quality child care, let alone pay for it, the five opposed to the credit chose to ignore reality and instead seized an opportunity to display some unsettlingly backward thinking on the matter.
Dels. Geoff Foster, R-Putnam; Laura Kimble, R-Harrison; Todd Longanacre, R-Greenbrier; Henry Dillon, R-Wayne; and Elias Coop-Gonzalez, R-Randolph, stood against helping make child care more affordable.
In the Senate, where the bill passed Tuesday by a 29-1 vote, only state Sen. Mike Azinger, R-Wood, stood in opposition.
Over in the House, two of those who voted no felt compelled to explain why.
“I’m just afraid with this bill it could be incentivizing one lifestyle over another,” Coop-Gonzalez said. “I certainly don’t want to put people who are wanting to have traditional families at a disadvantage.”
This bill does not do that, as those — men or women — who choose to stay home and care for their children are therefore not paying for child care to begin with.
“We might be in a situation where we are incentivizing mothers into leaving their homes and go enter the workforce, when otherwise on their own…without that government coercion in their lives they might not make that decision,” said Dillon.
Yes, here in the early 21st Century, we still have elected officials actively fighting against “incentivizing mothers into leaving their homes” and entering the workforce.
Voters must ask themselves what else these lawmakers might prioritize over doing their jobs to serve and uplift all Mountain State residents. The possibilities are horrifying.
Most importantly, though, is that meaningful help for West Virginia families is on the way to Gov. Jim Justice’s desk. He should sign this bill now.