Karen Schulman, Senior Policy Analyst

A new report by the National Women’s Law Center shows that most states were able to protect their child care assistance programs in the face of major state budget gaps, largely thanks to an additional $2 billion in federal child care funding for 2009 and 2010 provided by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA).

by Karen Schulman, Senior Policy Analyst, 
National Women's Law Center

I'm looking forward to celebrating Mother’s Day by getting together with my mom and dad and my sister and brother and their families and trying to get my mom to do as little as possible other than enjoying spending time with the family. But I'd like to think that Mother's Day isn't just about taking one day of the year to show appreciation for all our moms do. It should also be a day to think about ways to make it a little easier for our moms, as they try to juggle their uncountable responsibilities, all of the other days of the year.

There’s nothing we can do to make being a mom completely carefree. There are just too many things for them to worry about as they try to make sure their children are safe and happy and support their families in multiple ways, including financially—a particularly challenging task in today’s economy. Yet we can try to lend moms a hand in managing everything. One way to do this is by giving working moms the tools they need to find and afford reliable child care and early education for their children. Dependable child care is essential for enabling a mom to get and keep a job—and, once she's gotten a job, for enabling her to concentrate on her work secure in the knowledge that her children are in good hands.