Parents can't afford to wait on childcare solution. This week, we examine the cost of childcare related to average family incomes in St. Charles County, Missouri, and a tax credit package proposed by lawmakers to incentivize investment in childcare providers to help with talent recruitment and operating expenses.

This week, The Atlantic published an article signaling that private equity is interested in child care, especially in areas where the subsidy reimbursement rates have dramatically increased. Vermont, for example, recently raised eligibility levels to 575 percent of the federal poverty level (FPL). Missouri, by comparison, requires families to be at or below 150% of the FPL.

Good things happen when business and education align. We started 2024 with possibly the best example of the power of alignment. The House Workforce and Infrastructure Committee heard HB 1488 this week. This bill creates three tax credit programs totaling $60 million that childcare providers and employers can use to incentivize contributions and offset the cost of care. This legislation was a top priority of Governor Mike Parson last year but was one of the casualties of a warring Senate.