WASHINGTON – Congressman Rob Wittman (VA-01) recently sent two letters to Congressional leadership advocating for additional support to families, children and child care providers. The first letter requests greater flexibility for families utilizing Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA). The second letter encourages Congress to provide additional federal relief for child care providers as lawmakers weigh additional COVID-19 relief legislation.
“As our country moves towards economic recovery,” Congressman Wittman wrote, “No industry will be able to recover if a large portion of the workforce is unable to access the child care that they rely on to go to work. Additional federal investments will help ensure the child care industry’s survival now and will in turn support our economic recovery in the coming months.”
Congressman Wittman sent a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy urging leadership to provide added flexibility to parents utilizing FSAs to withdraw or rollover these funds, which otherwise could be lost at the end of the year. This will allow families to better manage their finances and care for their children during these difficult times.
He also joined a group of 41 colleagues noting that a national survey of child care providers showed that up to half of the country’s child care capacity could permanently disappear because of closures and lost revenue due to COVID-19. In this letter, Wittman and his colleagues reemphasize the importance of supporting child care providers in the next relief package to ensure that when Americans are back at work, child care providers are equipped to rejoin the workforce as well.
Click here to read Congressman Wittman’s letter urging improved guidance on FSAs
Click here to read the joint letter urging additional relief for child care providers
