It is time to change the narrative around social infrastructure investments for families. We beg to differ with people like Senator Manchin. It is urgent that our country invest in high-quality care, family leave, and universal pre-K not only because it helps children thrive in high-quality early environments, but because it enables parents to enter the workforce—raising families out of poverty. Remarkably, in 2017, the United States ranked 30th out of 33 member nations of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development in public spending on families and children, which includes policies such as child payments and allowances, parental leave benefits, and child care support. A 2019 study by the Pew Research Center noted that of the 41 industrial countries surveyed, only the U.S. did not have a policy around paid parental leave.

The proposed $3.5 trillion bill before the U.S. Congress right now could go a long way toward bringing the United States into alignment with other industrialized nations around the globe. It calls for a universal pre-K program for 3- and 4-year-olds; enhanced child care for working families, a total of 12 weeks of guaranteed paid parental, family, and personal leave, and a child tax credit totaling $3,600 for each child under 6 and $3,000 for each one under age 18.

The scientific evidence shows why investments in each of these policies are an investment in the future—not just in the long run with respect to child outcomes, but in the short run with respect to parental employment. The COVID-19 pandemic laid the problem bare. Women represented half of the workforce in 2020—a number that post-pandemic fell by 56 percent. When child care was unavailable, women became the default option, drastically reducing family income. Reduced family income appears to lead to lower social and cognitive outcomes for children.

Read the full article about social nets by Kathy Hirsh-Pasek and Peg Burchinal at Brookings.