YU: Subsidize DC Child Care Programs - Georgetown University The Hoya

With 20% of Washington, D.C. children born below the poverty line every year, promoting generational wealth growth is imperative for improving the conditions of historically marginalized communities. Baby bonds programs is one approach that has been gaining national traction partly because of a bill Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) reintroduced this year for a nationwide program. In general, the programs call for the establishment of interest-bearing accounts for children in qualifying households, which would receive annual deposits until the child reaches 18. Although the program does give young adults a leg up, the 18-year gap before the money is distributed is a critical time that requires financial support. The baby bonds program is a powerful first step to building intergenerational wealth, but it can only reach its full potential if paired with comprehensive child care legislation.

On Oct. 19, the Council of the District of Columbia unanimously voted in favor of the Child Wealth Building Act, which sets up an account for each child born in a qualifying low-income family beginning Oct. 1, 2021. Families at or below the federal poverty line (an annual income of $26,500 for a family of four) will receive an initial deposit of $500 with annual deposits of $1,000 at most. Those earning up to three times the poverty line, or $79,500 for a family of four, will also receive the $500 deposit but reduced annual payments of $600. These funds can be withdrawn when the child reaches 18 for a limited number of expenses, including paying for tuition, purchasing a house or starting a business. 

One of the key functions of baby bonds is to reduce intergenerational racial wealth disparities, which have experienced little change in the past decades. Black and Hispanic families are five times less likely to inherit wealth, and they receive less when they do. In fact, the ratio of white families’ wealth compared with that of Black families was higher in 2016 than at the beginning of the century. A 2018 study found that young white adults possess 16 times the wealth of young Black adults, but a national baby bonds program could reduce that number by a factor of. Thus, the D.C. program is a promising approach to closing long-standing racial divides among residents.

However, setting up a child for success once they turn 18 also means supporting their development throughout childhood. As employees prepare to return to in-person jobs, subsidizing child care has become one of the most pressing topics on the D.C. Council’s agenda. Parents simply cannot afford the fees necessary to provide high quality child care services. As health and safety regulations on day cares grow stricter, these costs will only increase. Proactive government measures such as fully funding the 2018 Birth-to-Three for All D.C. Amendment Act, which increases day care workers’ salaries and expands the number of families that can receive child care vouchers, are critical steps to ensuring children in underserved communities receive the care they need. Without sufficient programs to aid in raising a child, young adults will be ill prepared to apply the bond money to its intended purposes, like paying for a college education or home mortgage.

Many D.C. residents are well aware of current shortcomings in parental support and are eager to see government action on the issue. I spoke with two families who expressed varied reactions to the new program. Mejdi and his wife have a young daughter and are well aware of the financial challenges of raising a child. Mejdi was an avid proponent of the policy and the opportunities it would set up for young adults. He stated that “many families cannot afford to put away money for schools.” The bonds program would relieve a significant burden on parents planning for their child’s future.

Another young couple, who asked not to be named, supported measures to help parents but also spoke about other ways to further the policy’s impact. 

“Day care is the main cost during the early stages of raising a child,” the father said in an interview with The Hoya. 

Children require other expenses after day care, which cannot be provided through the bonds program. Around the ages of 0 to 12 is when parents require the most financial help. 

“By the time they are 18, their future is already figured out,” he said. 

Both of these families have one message in common: Raising a child is expensive and parents need all the help they can get. An issue so vital to the D.C. community requires the attention of all its members, even Georgetown University students. Nonprofit organizations like Jumpstart and Center for Social Justice, Research, Teaching & Service initiatives like DC Reads, which have programs on campus, are already involved in providing enriching educational experiences to underserved D.C. children. I urge the D.C. Council to take initiative and prioritize child care policies that ensure low-income families have the resources to raise a child until they reach adulthood. 

Angela Yu is a first year in the School of Foreign Service. District Discourse is published every other week.

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