Hannah News contributed to this report
The 2025 Childcare Policy Summit was held in downtown Columbus on April 1 to highlight the importance of childcare as a workforce development issue. Topics of discussion focused on childcare related provisions in the House Budget (H.B. 96), the need for childcare in the context of Ohio’s economy and where lawmakers stand with current childcare issues.
The summit was headlined by State Reps. Mark Johnson (R-Chillicothe), Andrea White (R-Kettering) and Bride Rose Sweeney (D-Westlake). Rep. Sweeney described Ohio’s current childcare investment level as a “failure.” Sweeney also noted that childcare is an increasingly bipartisan issue and discussed the workforce participation issues a lack of childcare can cause, particularly for women. Rep. White shared this sentiment and pointed out that the state already has a workforce issue.
Rep. Johnson characterized the problem as “an Ohio families issue” and shared Rep. Sweeney’s opinion that the issue was bipartisan. Rep. Johnson also pointed out that the issue is even more pronounced in Appalachian Ohio. In the context of H.B. 2, Rep. Johnson’s “Child Care Cred Program,” Rep. Johnson remarked on the need for increased wages for childcare workers.
A separate panel featured the Department of Children and Youth Director Kara Wente. She described the DeWine administration’s efforts to expand publicly funded childcare (PFCC). While acknowledging the need for expanded childcare access, she discussed how other states have explored “tri-share” models involving sharing costs between state government, employers and employees.
In conjunction with the event, the U.S. Chamber Foundation released a report finding childcare issues lead to an estimated $5.48 billion annual loss for Ohio’s economy, with $1.52 billion in lost tax revenue and $3.97 billion in business costs related to employee turnover and absenteeism as a result.
Seventy percent of parents with young children missed work or class at least once in the past three months due to childcare-related reasons, and 33% of parents who experienced employment disruptions in the past year reported leaving the workforce as a direct result of childcare issues, the report found as well.