House Bill 153 known as the Child Tax Credit 2024 Bill is headed to the table of the Governor. Child Tax Credit 2024 Bill would provide a $2.3 million tax break for eligible Utah parents but it would increase the maximum number of children an unlicensed daycare center can receive, from six to eight, as of May 1, 2024.
Utah tax credit 2024 bill would loosen rules for unlicensed childcare
Anna Thomas with Voices for Utah Children said the tax credit 2024 bill may contain some good in terms of tax credits but health and safety are being bargained when childcare providers aren’t licensed.
According to Thomas, there remain important health and safety concerns and a lot of children to have in one home with one person who may have first-aid training, and know how babies are supposed to sleep on their backs and not on their stomachs.
The tax credit 2024 bill does nothing to effectively address the high cost of child care in Utah and thinks state dollars should help in the effort to restrain it.
Read Also: New Child Tax Credit 2024 In Minnesota Helps Over 180,000 Kids Already, Says Governor
Child care has become a luxury, the Utah child tax credit 2024 bill can be a help?
There are some rails in place for residential child care, such as mandatory background checks for childcare unlicensed providers, and a limit of two children under age three as part of the maximum total. While some Utah parents can afford to have a parent stay home to provide care, it has become a luxury.
Nobody should feel ashamed about their childcare situation and people must use unlicensed care, because that is all that is nearby, and that is all that they can afford. Moving forward, parents must realize that is a system problem, that is not their problem.