{"id":23816,"date":"2026-01-27T12:33:57","date_gmt":"2026-01-27T17:33:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.merkley.senate.gov\/?p=23816"},"modified":"2026-01-27T12:33:59","modified_gmt":"2026-01-27T17:33:59","slug":"merkley-joins-senate-probe-of-trumps-cuts-to-child-care-for-rural-families","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.merkley.senate.gov\/es\/merkley-joins-senate-probe-of-trumps-cuts-to-child-care-for-rural-families\/","title":{"rendered":"Merkley Joins Senate Probe of Trump\u2019s Cuts to Child Care for Rural Families"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\u201cTrump vowed to lower costs for Americans, yet his administration\u2019s actions\u2026make this [child care crisis] worse.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Washington, D.C. \u2013 Oregon\u2019s U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley joined a group of Senators in announcing a new investigation into how the Trump Administration\u2019s cuts to affordable child care programs are affecting rural families. The Senators pressed the Department of Health and Human Services\u2019 Administration of Children and Families (ACF) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to provide answers about the threats to child care programs in rural communities amid staffing and funding cuts to the agencies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cFamilies across the country are being forced to choose whether to scale back work, forgo essential items, or break the bank to access and afford child care. The Trump administration\u2019s dangerous cuts to the agencies whose programs make child care more accessible and affordable only make this situation worse,\u201d wrote Merkley and the other Senators in a letter to the administration.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Child care\u00a0has become<\/a>\u00a0\u201cone of the biggest expenses families face,\u201d forcing parents\u2014especially mothers\u2014to reduce their working hours or leave the workforce entirely. This problem has an especially tough impact on families in rural areas, where they spend\u00a0even more of their income<\/a>\u00a0on child care and where child care is even harder to find. Recent\u00a0polling indicates<\/a>\u00a0that one in five rural families are \u201chaving trouble finding work, are cutting back on basic necessities, and are putting off growing their families due to a lack of affordable options that meet their family\u2019s needs.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Over the last year, the Trump administration has attacked child care programs and raised even more uncertainty for families, including by:<\/p>\n\n\n\n