Susan Collins is an advocate for Maine children and families

To the Editor;

For more than two decades, U.S. Sen. Susan Collins has been a leader and determined advocate on behalf of children and families in Maine and across our country. Specifically, she’s long championed initiatives that enable parents to access safe, reliable, and affordable child care.

For example, just last year she called for putting the effective Child Care and Development Block Grant Program on a path to doubling its funding in five years. Following this push, she successfully secured more than $8 billion, a 30 percent increase, for this program, which has assisted working families with their child care and preschool needs for the last 30 years. This substantial boost in funding will enable more parents to obtain reliable care for their children while they work or go to school to improve their own skills and education. 

In addition, in the last two government funding cycles, U.S. Sen. Collins secured more than $21 million in congressionally directed spending for 17 different programs supporting child care and early childhood education across the state.

Given these successful efforts, it was surprising to see a recent column in the Bangor Daily calling on her to “help make child care more affordable” and to “take a stand for parents and babies in Maine and across our country.” Ironically, she’s doing just that. And as the Vice Chair of the powerful Senate Appropriations Committee, she will continue to prioritize and support programs crucial to Maine families.

Annie Clark

communications director

U.S. Sen. Susan Collins

Washington, D.C.