September 26 – BEMIDJI – Childcare access, provider compensation and affordability were focuses of a candidate forum at
Pine Pals Intergenerational Learning Childcare and Preschool
on Tuesday.
Hosted by
Children count on us
– a coalition of providers, parents and teachers focused on creating quality, affordable childcare throughout Minnesota; – the forum brought together candidates for Minnesota House District 2A and 2B to discuss possible solutions to various child care issues.
were present
2A DFL candidate Reed Olson,
2A Republican candidate Bidal Duran
And
2B DFL candidate Michael Reyes.
Each candidate took turns answering questions from the audience and explaining their views on the child care crisis.
On the issue of affordability, Bemidji High School teacher Caitlin Djonne asked the candidates if they would support public funding to close the gap between what families can afford to pay for child care and what providers need to provide high-quality care .
“My husband and I pay $829 per week for the care we receive here at Pine Pals,” Djonne preceded. “If Minnesota were to fully fund child care, we would pay $4,800 per year, which is a significant difference from saving almost $40,000 per year.”
The Minnesota Legislature recently committed to it
Great Start Affordability Scholarship Program,
which would put a cap on the cost of childcare so that no family would have to pay more than 7% of their annual income to access quality childcare.
This percentage was determined by analyzing the necessary expenses faced by families with young children and what would be a “reasonable” amount for these families to spend.
“At current childcare costs, a family with just one child would have to earn almost $250,000 a year to pay just 7% of their annual income on childcare,” Djonne said. “These numbers highlight a huge gap between the true cost of providing high-quality care and what families can afford.”
The forum also covered the
Great Start Compensation Support Program,
which launched after the Legislature approved $1.3 billion in child care funding in 2023. From this program, $316 million was allocated to child care providers to increase wages and benefits for workers.
Olson expressed support for subsidizing parenting costs and ensuring workers earn a living wage through corporate and income taxes at the state level.
“We’re not talking about property taxes. We’re talking about corporate taxes, the highest income tax for individuals in our state. This is what we need to do,” Olson said. ‘You shouldn’t have to work 40 hours a week and not be able to pay your bills.
“We would love it if everyone made $250,000 a year, but that’s not the world we live in. Child care workers earn some of the lowest wages of any industry in the state of Minnesota, and they are among the hardest working people with some of our most precious cargo.”
Olson noted a trade-off between the state’s investments and business development that drives economic activity.
“If our tax regime in Minnesota were detrimental to corporations, all the Fortune 500 companies would be in Mississippi,” he added. “There are times when companies have left for a better tax regime in another state, but productivity has dropped so much that they come back to Minnesota because we have such a productive workforce and we invest in our children.”
Duran noted he was hesitant to raise taxes, noting the state’s relatively high tax rates compared to the other 49.
“We have to remember that Minnesota is the fourth or fifth highest taxed state in the country. If we keep raising the tax burden on corporations, they will just raise their prices and make everything else more expensive,” Duran said. “I would be very careful about subsidizing programs because that money has to come from somewhere.”
Duran would support reallocating funds from existing programs and subsidizing child care using programs that are already taxed.
“We’re trying to figure out what programs aren’t working right now so we can implement those funds into a program that would alleviate those problems,” Duran added. “These problems certainly exist. We just have to be able to find another solution.”
Reyes pointed to the cannabis industry as a future revenue source that could sidestep the need to raise taxes or redistribute funding at the state level.
“You don’t want to keep raising taxes because you don’t want to tax your citizens because they want to enjoy life,” Reyes said. “My question to those who don’t want to raise taxes is are they okay with this money going to child care? … The state will generate a lot of revenue from cannabis licensing and sales.”
Reyes cited his working relationship with Native American tribes in the area as a strength for addressing child care and other social issues.
“Bemidji wouldn’t be where it is today without the three surrounding tribes and the money they bring in,” Reyes said. “I’m going to put those relationships in place so that if we find a way to work together, we’re not duplicating services and we’re not paying more taxes for some of these services.”
After more discussion, attendees left Pine Pals with a little more knowledge that they will take with them to the voting booth on Tuesday, November 5.
“Child care is a critical issue across the state and especially here in Bemidji,” said Lydia Pietruszewski, executive director of Pine Pals. “It deserves the attention of our lawmakers.”
