Press Releases

Today, Representatives Suzan DelBene (WA-01) Danny Davis (IL-07), and Linda Sánchez (CA-38) introduced the Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit Enhancement Act, legislation which would permanently expand the child and dependent care tax credit. The bill would raise the maximum credit from $1,050 to $4,000 for one child, and $2,100 to $8,000 for two or more children.

The Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit (CDCTC) is the only tax credit that helps working parents offset the rising cost of child care. In 2021, Democrats successfully enhanced both the CDCTC and the Child Tax Credit because both credits are essential to support parents’ ability to provide for their families.

The current CDCTC fails to meet the needs of tens of millions of working families. Very few families receive meaningful benefit from the credit due to the extremely low phase-out level of $15,000, the low expense limits, the non-refundable nature, and the loss of benefit due to inflation. The Tax Policy Center estimates that only 13% of families with children claimed the CDCTC in 2022.

The bill increases the credit amount, expands eligibility to low-income families, makes the credit available to married couples who file separately due to high student loan debt, and retains the credit’s value over time by indexing it to inflation.

High-quality, affordable child care is essential to the economic well-being of families, businesses, and our country. Yet, child care places a major financial burden on American families. The price of child care can range from $5,357 to $17,171 per year depending on location and type of care. Astoundingly, the cost of center-based care for two children is more than the average mortgage in 41 states and more than the average annual rent in all 50 states plus DC.

“Access to affordable child care is one of the biggest barriers families face. Enhancing the Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit will give parents the relief they need by supporting both families and care providers,” said DelBene. “This bill is a commonsense step toward making child care more accessible and affordable for every family.” 

“High-quality, affordable child care is essential to the economic well-being of families, businesses, and our country,” said Davis. “I am proud to lead the Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit Enhancement Act that would restore the 2021 credit so that families can receive up to $4,000 for child care for one child or up to $8,000 for two or more children, much better than the almost $600 that the typical family receives currently. This bill would strengthen the financial well-being of families and grow our economy. It is critical that Congress acts now to help working families.”

“Working parents shouldn’t have to choose between earning a paycheck and caring for their kids,” said Sánchez. “Expanding the child care tax credit will make child care more affordable and accessible, so parents can focus on their work knowing their kids are being cared for.”

“For families with young children, the cost of childcare is often unaffordable and impacts their economic opportunity—the cornerstone of child and family well-being. The Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit (CDCTC) Enhancement Act of 2025 is an important effort to update the CDCTC to ensure that more families can offset their child care costs. We are grateful to Rep. Danny Davis and his longstanding efforts to support children and families in his district and across the country, and also extend that appreciation to Reps. Suzan DelBene and Linda Sanchez,” said Diana Rauner, President, Start Early.

“Often conflated with the child tax credit, the Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit is one of the only tax incentives that helps working families with their child care expenses. As the cost of care increases, many families must contend with whether their current job pays enough to justify their child care expenses,” said Radha Mohan, Executive Director, Early Care & Education Consortium. “For families where one parent must leave the workforce because they cannot afford the cost of care, this often hurts the family from an economic standpoint in the long run. The CDCTC Enhancement Act helps ensure that families do not have to make this choice by providing a credit to offset the cost of care. When paired with programs such as the Child Care and Development Block Grant, this bill will ensure that many families will have reduced their child care costs by over 50%.”

"As almost any working family with young children will tell you, the cost of child care is a major source of financial stress, putting immense pressure on already tight budgets,” First Five Years Fund Executive Director Sarah Rittling. “The Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit Enhancement would make essential updates to the CDCTC to ensure more parents are able to keep more of what they earn to offset the high cost of care. We are grateful to Reps. Danny Davis, Suzan DelBene, and Linda Sanchez for their leadership and commitment to supporting families with young children.”

“Affordable child care isn’t a luxury—it’s the backbone of our economy,” said Yelena Tsilker, Senior Government Relations and Advocacy Director at ZERO TO THREE. “Parents of infants now face child care bills that top $16,000 a year—higher than in-state college tuition in many states. The Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit Enhancement Act tackles that crisis head-on by making the CDCTC fully refundable and increasing the maximum credit, so families of every income can choose the high-quality care their babies need. This relief will keep parents in the workforce and help millions of children thrive. We applaud Representatives Davis, DelBene, and Sánchez for championing legislation that hard-working families have long awaited.” 

The bill has been endorsed by the Center for Law and Social Policy; Child Care Aware of America; Early Care and Education Consortium; First Five Years Fund; First Focus Campaign for Children; MomsRising; National Association for the Education of Young Children; National Women’s Law Center Action Fund; Save the Children; Start Early; Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM); and ZERO TO THREE.

This bill is led by Tina Smith (MN), Ron Wyden (OR), and Patty Murray (WA) in the Senate.