(Washington) - Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney (D-Ga.) announced today "I will not co-sponsor the Clinton Administration’s child care tax credit until it is made more inclusive of America’s poor working families. This bill will help working families pay for child care, increase the number of quality after-school programs, improve the safety and quality of care, and promote learning, but I had hoped that the initiative would have been more inclusive of the needs of America’s poor working families and reflect some of the spirit of HR 2778, the Family Dependent Care Affordability Act of 1997, which I introduced last year."

The Administration’s bill promises to give working parents assurance that their children are in good hands during the work day and increases tax credits for three million working families. "Quality day care and after-school care can make a difference in children’s lives and give parents real peace of mind, but this piece of legislation overlooks a substantial cross-section of America. Without a refundable tax credit, more than 11 million of our most needy working families still will not be able to take advantage of this initiative. I, along with a number of my colleagues, would like to see this important issue pushed further making it a more inclusive piece of legislation. Tax refundability is an essential component to making sure that working families benefit from this initiative," said McKinney.

The Democratic Child Care Bill will:

• Increase tax credits for three million working families to help them pay for child care.
• Establish a tax credit for stay-at-home parents with children under the age of four.
• Double the number of children receiving child care assistance
• Provide after-school care for up to one million children per year
• Improve child care safety and quality and enhance early childhood development.

"Although this bill, in it’s original form, does not go as far as I’d like, I look forward to moving forward on this initiative and applaud the White House for taking the first step in helping America’s working families with daycare assistance," concluded McKinney.